The USS Ronald Reagan steams in the Philippine Sea, Oct. 2, 2016. The U.S. and South Korean navies began carrier-group exercises Monday, Oct. 10, 2016, ahead of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier's anticipated arrival on the Korean peninsula. (Tyrone Pham/U.S. Navy photo)
SEOUL, South Korea — The U.S. and South Korean navies began war games Monday ahead of the anticipated arrival of the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan.
While the military stressed the joint drills are routine, tensions are high as North Korea has shown faster-than-expected progress in its weapons programs, including launching missiles from a submarine.
The exercises began on the same day that North Korea celebrated the 71st founding of its ruling Workers’ Party, prompting speculation that it may stage another nuclear or missile test since it often links provocations to high-profile events.
South Korea’s military was on high alert, with an official saying the North could carry out another nuclear test at its leadership’s will. Recent satellite photos have shown activity at all three tunnels at the North’s underground test site.
The weeklong naval show of force – dubbed “Invincible Spirit” – is aimed at displaying the allies’ “strong will to punish North Korea’s continuous provocations, including nuclear tests” as well as improving joint capabilities, South Korea’s navy said in a statement.
It said the joint exercises, in waters to the east and west, will target virtual North Korean special forces trying to infiltrate south of the demarcation lines that divide the countries.
Allied forces also will carry out anti-submarine, anti-aircraft and pinpoint strike drills off the southeastern tip of the peninsula, it added.
The Yokosuka, Japan-based Ronald Reagan — the Navy’s only forward-deployed aircraft carrier — along with more than 40 South Korean naval vessels and military aircraft were participating.
“The U.S. and the Republic of Korea share one of the strongest alliances in the world, and we grow stronger as an alliance because of our routine exercises here in South Korea and the close relationship and ties that we forge from operating at sea together,” Rear Adm. Charles Williams, commander of the Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group, said in a statement.
North Korea has conducted two underground nuclear explosions this year and test-fired nearly two dozen ballistic missiles as it steps up its efforts to develop a nuclear-tipped missile that could reach the U.S. mainland. North Korea also is believed to be modernizing its naval forces.
South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported that a similar “Invincible Spirit” exercise occurred in July 2010 following a torpedo attack blamed on the North that sunk the South Korean corvette Cheonan, killing 46 seamen. Pyongyang denied responsibility.
The U.S. has about 28,500 servicemembers stationed in South Korea and regularly stages joint war games aimed at maintaining readiness against the North. The peninsula has been divided by the world’s most fortified border since the 1950-53 Korean War ended in an armistice instead of a peace treaty.
