U.S. carrier group to conduct drills with South Korean, Japanese militaries

Defense

Published: 28 Mar. 2023, 16:00 Updated: 28 Mar. 2023, 16:50

U.S. carrier group to conduct drills with South Korean, Japanese militaries

The nuclear-powered USS Nimitz aircraft carrier enters Busan on Tuesday following a joint exercise with the South Korean Navy the previous day. [YONHAP]

A U.S. Navy carrier strike group that arrived in Busan on Tuesday is set to carry out joint exercises with the South Korean and Japanese militaries after it leaves port, a U.S. Navy official said.

Speaking at a press briefing aboard the nuclear-powered USS Nimitz aircraft carrier, Rear Adm. Christopher Sweeney, the commander of Carrier Strike Group 11, announced the U.S. naval detachment is “scheduled to do a trilateral exercise with the JMSDF and ROK Navy after we pull out of Busan,” which he said was “very important for interoperability.”

Rear Adm. Christopher Sweeney, commander of the U.S. Navy's Carrier Strike Group 11, is greeted by a child dressed in traditional hanbok in Busan after the arrival of USS Nimitz on Tuesday. [YONHAP]

The JMSDF refers to the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, while ROK stands for the official name of South Korea, the Republic of Korea.

A South Korean defense official who spoke on condition of anonymity to reporters said the trilateral exercise is expected to take place early next week, after the carrier pulls out of Busan this weekend.

South Korea, the United States and Japan previously held three-way maritime drills in September and October last year, which took place in the East Sea with the USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier present.

USS Nimitz is docked at the ROK Fleet Command following joint exercises with the South Korean Navy that took place south of Jeju Island on Monday.

USS Nimitz is the flagship of Carrier Strike Group 11, which includes USS Bunker Hill, a Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser, and two Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyers, USS Wayne E. Meyer and USS Decatur. Aboard USS Nimitz are some 70 combat aircraft, including F/A-18 fighters and E-2 Hawkeye early warning aircraft.

Prior to the arrival of USS Nimitz in Busan on Tuesday, the North conducted an exercise simulating a nuclear airburst with what it claimed were “tactical” ballistic missiles mounted with mock nuclear warheads.

Sweeney said during the press conference that he’s “not threatened or worried about North Korea,” adding that the United States has “deployable strategic assets at the ready on every day.”

BY MICHAEL LEE [lee.junhyuk@joongang.co.kr]