South Korea To Hold Massive Firing Drills Near North Korea

From Yonhap News:

2010/12/23 09:49 KST




S. Korea to hold massive firing drills near N. Korea

SEOUL, Dec. 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korea was to hold massive firing drills involving missiles, artillery and fighter jets near the border with North Korea Thursday in the latest in a series of exercises designed as a show of force to deter further provocations by the communist nation.



The Army-Air Force joint drills will be the largest-ever exercises of their kind in terms of firepower involved. A total of 105 kinds of weapons, including anti-tank missiles, attack helicopters, multiple launch rocket systems and six fighter jets will be mobilized for the exercises, officials said.



About 800 troops will take part in the exercises at a firing range in Pocheon, north of Seoul.



The drills are the latest in a series that South Korea has held in the wake of the North's deadly shelling of Yeonpyeong Island near the Yellow Sea border between the two sides in an effort to test its preparedness and warn the North against making future provocations.



South Korea has repeatedly vowed harsh counterattacks in case of future strikes by the North.



On Monday, South Korea conducted a live-fire artillery drill from the shelled island of Yeonpyeong. Tension spiked at the time as Pyongyang had warned Seoul to call it off or face a counterstrike heavier than last month's shelling that killed four people, including two civilians.



But the North did not launch a counterattack, saying the drill was not worth a response.



The U.S. expressed support for the South's new exercise plans.



"I think exercises that have been announced well in advance, that are transparent, that are defensive in nature should in no way engender a response from the North Koreans," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said. "Everybody, I think, in the world is aware that they're happening. And they are exercises that are defensive in nature. The United States is obviously supportive of the Republic of Korea."



Separately, the South's Navy was to hold a second day of maritime firing exercises off the east coast Thursday, which involve six naval ships and Lynx anti-submarine helicopters. The drills, held about 100 kilometers south of the eastern sea maritime border with the North, are scheduled to run until Friday.



On Tuesday, South Korea also lit up a giant Christmas tree at a front-line hill called Aegibong near North Korea despite concerns that the belligerent regime might attempt to strike down the glowing structure that it denounces as psychological warfare.



The defense ministry says that the military is maintaining readiness to strike immediately back at the North in case of provocations while continuing to put fighter jets on mid-air standby. Minister Kim Kwan-jin has said the state of high alert will continue until North Korean threats drop visibly.









This file photo shows Army tanks conducting firing exercises at a range in Pocheon, north of Seoul, in June. South Korea plans to conduct massive firing drills at the range on Dec. 23. (Yonhap)





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