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US, South Korea to Stage Massive Joint War Games

   VOA News 15 August 2010

Photo: AP

   South Korea Military Drills

   The  United  States and South Korea will hold a massive joint military
   exercise this week aimed, at deterring aggression.
   About  30,000  American troops and around 56,000 South Korean soldiers
   will  take part in the 10-day annual Ulchi Freedom Guardian war games,
   which begin Monday and run through August 26.
   The  exercise comes a week after Seoul completed anti-submarine drills
   near  a  disputed  west  coast  maritime  border with North Korea that
   prompted  Pyongyang  to  retaliate  by  firing  a barrage of artillery
   shells in the same area.
   Last  month,  the  U.S. and South Korea held a joint navel exercise in
   the  East  Sea  (Sea  of  Japan) after the sinking of the South Korean
   warship  Cheonan,  which an investigation showed was caused by a North
   Korean torpedo.
   Pyongyang  has denied any responsibility for the sinking, which killed
   46 South Korean sailors.
   Both  North  Korea  and China have criticized the war games as raising
   tensions in the region.

   Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters.

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