Joint Naval Exercises

[Anchor Lead]

Three American nuclear-powered aircraft carriers have been mobilized for joint military exercises in the East Sea. The high-intensity naval exercises aim to deter North Korea's aggression and demonstrate the U.S. and South Korea's readiness to retaliate strongly in case of North Korean provocation.

[Pkg]

Three U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carriers have entered the South Korean naval operation zone in the East Sea. The three flattops - USS Nimitz, USS Ronald Reagan, and USS Theodore Roosevelt - sail side by side. All three have a displacement of 100,000 tons or more and each carrier is loaded with some 80 aircraft, including fighter jets, airborne early warning systems, and naval helicopters. Right behind the super carriers are the South Korean Navy's Aegis destroyers, the Ryu Seong-ryong and the King Sejong the Great. Scheduled to continue until Tuesday. the naval exercise will include three American aircraft carriers and 11 Aegis destroyers, and seven vessels from the South Korean Navy. This is the first time that three aircraft carriers have been mobilized in such close proximity to waters near the Korean Peninsula. The South Korean and U.S. Navies are conducting high-intensity drills, such as carrier escort operations, air fire, and combat jet takeoff and landing.

[Soundbite] Capt. Lee Gu-seong(Commander, Sejong the Great-class Destroyer) : "The S. Korean and U.S. Navies are maintaining perfect readiness to carry out joint operations anywhere, anytime. We plan to deter enemy provocations with the solid ROK-US alliance."

South Korea and the United States agreed at bilateral security talks on October 28th and last Tuesday's summit to expand and strengthen the rotational deployment of American strategic assets around the Korean Peninsula. So far North Korea has not shown any unusual reaction to the joint naval exercises.