USS Ronald Reagan joins South Korea naval parade
The USS Ronald Reagan, a Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, has arrived in South Korea for a joint military exercise, Press TV reports.
The warship participated in a parade off the port city of Busan on Saturday to mark the 70th anniversary of South Korea's liberation and founding of its navy.
Some 5,800 military personnel as well as dozens of military vehicles participated in the event.
The joint military exercise, which would continue for a week, is expected to raise tensions on the Korean Peninsula. Pyongyang has already condemned the US-South Korea joint exercises as war practices.
A number of South Korean activists staged a demonstration in Busan to oppose the deployment of the US warship.
"We oppose the USS Ronald Reagan's coming here since it would reignite tensions on the Korean Peninsula and contribute to sparking confrontation between the two Koreas," a female protester told Press TV.
"To reach peaceful North-South ties, dialogue between Pyongyang and Seoul through six-party talks is needed, not the USS Ronald Reagan docking here," she added.
The United States has more than 28,000 troops deployed in South Korea, which has remained technically at war with its neighbor since the 1950-1953 Korean War ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty.
Tensions have increased between the Asian countries after two South Korean soldiers were critically wounded in August by North Korean mines allegedly placed in the demilitarized zone between the two states. In response, South Korea started propaganda broadcasts across the border.
North Korea is under UN sanctions over launching rockets considered by the US and South Korea as ballistic missiles aimed at delivering nuclear warheads, but Pyongyang says its numerous missile tests seek to boost defense capabilities in the face of enemy threats.
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