By EFE
Jun 22, 2024, 17:02 PM EDT
The US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt arrived this Saturday at the port of Busan, southeast of South Korea, in a show of force following the summit this week between Moscow and Pyongyang.
The aircraft carrier entered the Busan naval base, nearly 200 miles from Seoul, early Saturday, the South Korean Navy said, along with the 7,600-ton Aegis-equipped destroyer USS Halsey.
This Saturday marks the first arrival of a US aircraft carrier to South Korea in seven months since the visit of the USS Carl Vinson in November, also the first stop in Busan of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, which participated in a trilateral naval exercise between South Korea. South, United States and Japan in April.
The arrival comes days before the three nations hold their first trilateral multidisciplinary exercise later this month, known as Freedom Edge, and amid efforts to bolster cooperation on security issues against potential threats from North Korea.
The United States and South Korea were already carrying out similar exercises under the name Freedom Shield, in which they would now also seek to involve Japan.
The arrival of the aircraft carrier occurs after this week, the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, and the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, held a summit in the North Korean capital, which marked the first visit of the Moscow leader to the hermetic country. in more than 24 years.
In this context, they signed a “Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Agreement” that replaces the bilateral agreements sealed until now by Moscow and Pyongyang, which requires both parties not to sign pacts with third countries that infringe the fundamental interests of the other or participate in such acts. .
Keep reading:
- Kim Jong-un’s sister threatens Seoul if it reactivates propaganda loudspeakers on the border
- US launches first bombing drill on Korean Peninsula in seven years
- North Korea launches a dozen ballistic missiles into the Sea of Japan and tensions rise