China has proposed emergency talks on the Korea crisis for early December.South Korea said it is seriously considering the idea.Meanwhile,South Koreans went about their Sunday routines in their capital,Seoul,attending religious services or shopping.
The U.S. has been frustrated by China's failure to pressure its ally North Korea into better behavior.
Artillery fire from the north was heard Sunday on Yeongpyeong Island,site of North Korea's deadly attack last Tuesday,sending the remaining civilians into shelters.No shells landed there today.Many of the residents have left the island chain near the sea border between the two Koreas.
An armada of 10 U.S. Navy and South Korean warships have begun exercising nearby in the Yellow Sea.Communications,logistics and defensive tactics will be practiced during the four-day maneuvers.They are part of a series of exercises which began after North Korea sank a South Korean warship,the Cheonan,in March of this year,and are intended to improve coordination and demonstrate solidarity.No weapons will be fired during the drills.
Showing posts with label Cheonan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cheonan. Show all posts
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Early Edition:Naval Exercises To Continue
Naval exercises in the Yellow Sea off the Korean peninsula by South Korean and U.S. forces will proceed in spite of North Korea's violent outburst Tuesday.The aircraft carrier USS George Washington(CVN 73) left its homeport in Japan as scheduled on Tuesday and will join the maneuvers shortly.
North Korea had opened fire with K-9 155mm Howitzers on Yeongpyeong Island in the Yellow Sea,7 miles off the coast of South Korea,killing 2 South Korean Marines and injuring 3 civilians and 16 military personnel.The attack lasted about an hour.
Fires from the barrages were still burning at nightfall.Thousands of civilians were being evacuated from a chain of 31 islands.South Korea had responded to the aggression with barrages of its own.The Pentagon said it had no plans to attack the north,and U.S. forces were not put on alert.
In March,a North Korean submarine sank the South Korean warship Cheonan in the same area,killing 46 South Korean sailors.The north doesn't recognize the western maritime border established by the U.N. in 1953,at the truce of the Korean War,which was never formally ended.Several clashes have occurred over the disputed maritime border and along the Demilitarized Zone on land.
President Barrack Obama was awakened at 3:55 am and told of the incident,which he later condemned.North Korea is in the midst of a transition of power from Kim Jung Il to his son Kim Jong Un,who was recently made a four star general,and many observers see the attack as the son's baptism of fire,gaining him credibility with North Korea's powerful army.
The USS George Washington carries about 80 aircraft.Powered by two nuclear reactors,it can cruise at 30+ knots.Around 28,000 U.S. troops are stationed in South Korea.
Update:The bodies of two construction workers were found buried in the rubble left by North Korea's artillery barrage on Tuesday,raising the death toll to four.The USS George Washington and her carrier battle group should arrive on scene by Sunday to conduct four days of naval exercises with South Korea.North Korea has threatened more attacks if the exercises violate even a millimeter of its perceived territory.
An angry protest against the North Korean aggression took place in Seoul,South Korea.
Update 2:South Korea has reinforced Yeongpyeong Island and other islands nearby with 4,000 more of its marines.General Walter Sharp,commander of U.S. forces in Korea,has toured the devastated island,describing North Korea's attack as being in clear violation of the armistice agreement of 1953.South Korean veterans bitterly criticized the government's response to the aggression,considering it weak and slow.Fire was not returned for 13 minutes.
U.S. and South Korean naval exercises will begin in the Yellow Sea around noon on Sunday,a U.S. Navy spokesman said.They will not be live fire exercises because they are being held in a high traffic area.The maneuvers were planned in advance of the North Korean attack.
North Korea had opened fire with K-9 155mm Howitzers on Yeongpyeong Island in the Yellow Sea,7 miles off the coast of South Korea,killing 2 South Korean Marines and injuring 3 civilians and 16 military personnel.The attack lasted about an hour.
Fires from the barrages were still burning at nightfall.Thousands of civilians were being evacuated from a chain of 31 islands.South Korea had responded to the aggression with barrages of its own.The Pentagon said it had no plans to attack the north,and U.S. forces were not put on alert.
In March,a North Korean submarine sank the South Korean warship Cheonan in the same area,killing 46 South Korean sailors.The north doesn't recognize the western maritime border established by the U.N. in 1953,at the truce of the Korean War,which was never formally ended.Several clashes have occurred over the disputed maritime border and along the Demilitarized Zone on land.
President Barrack Obama was awakened at 3:55 am and told of the incident,which he later condemned.North Korea is in the midst of a transition of power from Kim Jung Il to his son Kim Jong Un,who was recently made a four star general,and many observers see the attack as the son's baptism of fire,gaining him credibility with North Korea's powerful army.
The USS George Washington carries about 80 aircraft.Powered by two nuclear reactors,it can cruise at 30+ knots.Around 28,000 U.S. troops are stationed in South Korea.
Update:The bodies of two construction workers were found buried in the rubble left by North Korea's artillery barrage on Tuesday,raising the death toll to four.The USS George Washington and her carrier battle group should arrive on scene by Sunday to conduct four days of naval exercises with South Korea.North Korea has threatened more attacks if the exercises violate even a millimeter of its perceived territory.
An angry protest against the North Korean aggression took place in Seoul,South Korea.
Update 2:South Korea has reinforced Yeongpyeong Island and other islands nearby with 4,000 more of its marines.General Walter Sharp,commander of U.S. forces in Korea,has toured the devastated island,describing North Korea's attack as being in clear violation of the armistice agreement of 1953.South Korean veterans bitterly criticized the government's response to the aggression,considering it weak and slow.Fire was not returned for 13 minutes.
U.S. and South Korean naval exercises will begin in the Yellow Sea around noon on Sunday,a U.S. Navy spokesman said.They will not be live fire exercises because they are being held in a high traffic area.The maneuvers were planned in advance of the North Korean attack.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Naval Exercises:Allies Send Stern Message
Since Sunday,naval exercises have been occurring off the South Korean coast,conducted by the U.S. and its South Korean ally.The war games are a clear warning to North Korea that further aggression will not be tolerated.On 26 March,a North Korean submarine attacked and sank the South Korean warship Cheonan with a torpedo,killing 46 South Korean sailors.It was the worst incident since the Korean War was paused in 1953.The war was never formally ended.A group of U.S. sailors bowed their heads in silence as they visited the wreckage of the Cheonan at a naval headquarters south of Seoul.
In response to the deadly attack,the U.S. dispatched the USS George Washington(CVN 73),a nuclear aircraft carrier,from its home port in Yokosuka,Japan,along with its Carrier Strike Group,which is a flotilla of smaller warships plus a nuclear submarine.Included in the CSG were three Arleigh Burke class destroyers.South Korea sent its Landing Platform Helicopter ship Dokdo.The U.S. Air Force contributed F-22 Raptor stealth fighters,their first participation in such an exercise.In total,200 aircraft,20 warships and 8,000 troops took part in the show of force.North Korea bitterly criticized the display,but so far has taken no concrete action against it.
The war games took place mainly off the east coast of South Korea.Plans to exercise in the Yellow Sea as well,off the west coast and closer to China,were protested by Beijing,and have possibly been scaled back in consequence.It is unclear how long the activity will last,or how many exercises will be staged in which locations.
Occasional outbreaks of hostility have occurred since 1953 along the Demilitarized Zone which separates the two Koreas.Some American troops have been killed in them.There have also been clashes at sea between the two Koreas.The eccentric Communist Pyongyang regime has alternately lashed out at democratic Seoul and sought better relations with it.Pyongyang is believed to possess nuclear weapons,but has so far failed to develop an effective delivery system.
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the beginning of the Korean War,in which more than 33,000 U.S. troops were killed as,together with other UN forces,they pushed the North Korean invaders back north of the DMZ.Many other Americans remain missing in action.North Korea is a highly militarized state,devoting almost all its resources to combat preparations.
In response to the deadly attack,the U.S. dispatched the USS George Washington(CVN 73),a nuclear aircraft carrier,from its home port in Yokosuka,Japan,along with its Carrier Strike Group,which is a flotilla of smaller warships plus a nuclear submarine.Included in the CSG were three Arleigh Burke class destroyers.South Korea sent its Landing Platform Helicopter ship Dokdo.The U.S. Air Force contributed F-22 Raptor stealth fighters,their first participation in such an exercise.In total,200 aircraft,20 warships and 8,000 troops took part in the show of force.North Korea bitterly criticized the display,but so far has taken no concrete action against it.
The war games took place mainly off the east coast of South Korea.Plans to exercise in the Yellow Sea as well,off the west coast and closer to China,were protested by Beijing,and have possibly been scaled back in consequence.It is unclear how long the activity will last,or how many exercises will be staged in which locations.
Occasional outbreaks of hostility have occurred since 1953 along the Demilitarized Zone which separates the two Koreas.Some American troops have been killed in them.There have also been clashes at sea between the two Koreas.The eccentric Communist Pyongyang regime has alternately lashed out at democratic Seoul and sought better relations with it.Pyongyang is believed to possess nuclear weapons,but has so far failed to develop an effective delivery system.
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the beginning of the Korean War,in which more than 33,000 U.S. troops were killed as,together with other UN forces,they pushed the North Korean invaders back north of the DMZ.Many other Americans remain missing in action.North Korea is a highly militarized state,devoting almost all its resources to combat preparations.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
South Korea On Alert
The South Korean military has been put on high alert after one of its patrol boats,the 1200-ton Cheonan,exploded,breaking up and sinking in disputed waters just off the North Korean coast.South Korean and U.S. Navy ships were on standby in the area as rescue efforts proceeded.Fifty-eight sailors were rescued,and 46 are unaccounted for.At first,South Korean authorities downplayed a North Korean role in the sinking of the warship,which had been in a previous clash with North Korea.The area has been the scene of repeated naval conflicts in recent years,some involving casualties.
A diver perished in the rescue attempt.It had been hoped there might be survivors in air pockets in the wreckage.The rescue effort continued into nighttime hours.The South Korean defense minister,Kim Tae-young,raised the possibility of a North Korean mine,either left over from the Korean War or deliberately floated toward the Cheonan,being the cause of the tragedy.The U.S. Navy has made advances in mine detection and neutralizing a priority,with several new helicopter-based systems currently in the testing phase.
A diver perished in the rescue attempt.It had been hoped there might be survivors in air pockets in the wreckage.The rescue effort continued into nighttime hours.The South Korean defense minister,Kim Tae-young,raised the possibility of a North Korean mine,either left over from the Korean War or deliberately floated toward the Cheonan,being the cause of the tragedy.The U.S. Navy has made advances in mine detection and neutralizing a priority,with several new helicopter-based systems currently in the testing phase.
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