South Korea, U.S. launch massive naval exercise

PanARMENIAN.Net - South Korea and the United States on Saturday, June 23, launched a massive naval exercise in the tense Yellow Sea, ahead of the 62nd anniversary Monday of the outbreak of the Korean War, a spokesman said, according to AFP.

The three-day drill will involve 10 South Korean warships plus the USS George Washington aircraft carrier, 8,000 personnel and hundreds of combat aircraft, the defense ministry said.

The joint naval drill, which comes amid high tensions on the peninsula, is conducted every year, alternatively in the Sea of Japan (East Sea) and the Yellow Sea.

"The naval exercise started as scheduled today," the defense ministry spokesman said.

On Friday, South Korean and U.S. troops held their biggest single-day joint live-fire exercise to test responses to any North Korean attack.

The drill at Pocheon near the North Korean border involved 2,000 troops along with jet fighters, tanks, Apache attack helicopters, A-10 "tank-killer" aircraft, missiles and rocket launchers, the defense ministry said.

On Thursday and Friday, the U.S., South Korea and Japan carried out a separate drill off the southern South Korean island of Jeju, involving destroyers, supply ships and helicopters. North Korea denounced it as a "reckless provocation".

Tensions are high after the North's failed rocket launch in April, seen by the U.S. and its allies as an attempted ballistic missile test.

"Throughout the joint military exercises, South Korean and U.S. forces will test their ability for joint operations and enhance combat-readiness," Navy Brigadier General Park Seong-Bae said in a statement Friday. "We will immediately retaliate against any attacks from North Korea and finish the enemy off on the spot."