South Korea has begun naval exercises in the Yellow Sea despite North Korea's threat of a "counterattack," the Yonhap news agency said on Thursday.
South Korea will hold anti-submarine exercises near the border with North Korea through August 9. The exercises, involving about 20 vessels and 50 supersonic fighter jets, are designed to strengthen the defense capabilities of the South Korean navy following the sinking of the Cheonan warship.
The 1,200-ton Cheonan warship sank near the disputed Northern Limit Line in the Yellow Sea on March 26, causing the loss of 46 lives.
U.S., Swedish and British experts later determined that North Korea had fired a torpedo at the vessel from a submarine, although Pyongyang denies the allegations.
Last month the United States and South Korea conducted large-scale military exercises in the Sea of Japan. The exercises were initially scheduled for June 8-11, but were postponed as the sides waited for a UN resolution on the sinking of the Cheonan.
The UN Security Council condemned the incident and stressed the need to prevent similar attacks in the region, but did not place direct responsibility on North Korea.
North Korea said last month's exercises violated the country's sovereignty and were a threat to security on the Korean Peninsula and in Asia as a whole. Pyongyang threatened to start "a retaliatory sacred war" against the United States and its "lackeys."
MOSCOW, August 5 (RIA Novosti)
