‘Joint South Korea-US drill sent strong message to North’
July 29th, 2010 - 1:04 pm ICT by IANSSeoul, July 29 (DPA) Four-day joint naval drills by the South Korean and US military in the Sea of Japan sent a strong message to North Korea, the US command said Thursday.
“These defensive, combined training exercises are designed to send a clear message to North Korea that its aggressive behaviour must stop,” General Walter Sharp, commander of the 28,500 US troops in South Korea, said in a statement.
The aircraft carrier USS George Washington, several destroyers from both navies and more than 200 aircraft were deployed along with 8,000 personnel for the exercises, codenamed Invincible Spirit, which started Sunday and ended Wednesday.
South Korea accuses the Stalinist North of being responsible for the sinking of one of its warships in March.
Meanwhile, military talks between Pyongyang and the US-led UN Command scheduled for Thursday have been postponed, the Yonhap news agency reported, quoting a defence ministry official in Seoul.
The third colonel-level meeting had been convened to discuss the sinking of the Cheonan. Last week, the two sides had agreed to meet Thursday, but had not confirmed the date, the official said.
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- S Korea, US to hold more antisubmarine drills - Aug 19, 2010
- North Korea warns of nuclear response to military drills - Jul 24, 2010
- North Korea demands own probe into 'Cheonan' sinking - Jul 17, 2010
- US, South Korea discuss UN resolution against North Korea - Jun 17, 2010
- N.Korea, S. Korea military talks break down over 'The Cheonan' sinking controversy - Oct 01, 2010
- North Korea threatens response to naval exercise - Jul 23, 2010
- Seoul calls on North Korea to stop provocation - Jun 25, 2010
- US aircraft carrier to join new South Korean naval drill - Aug 06, 2010
- South Korea conducts anti-submarine drills - May 27, 2010
- US-S. Korea conducts joint military drill amid war threats from N. Korea - Jul 26, 2010
- North Korea threatens to destroy South's 'propaganda' loudspeakers - Jun 12, 2010
- China calls for emergency talks over North Korea - Nov 28, 2010
Tags: aggressive behaviour, aircraft carrier uss, combined training, defence ministry, destroyers, george washington, invincible spirit, military talks, ministry official, navies, north korea, pyongyang, sea of japan, seoul, south korea, south korean, training exercises, uss george washington, warships, yonhap news agency