USS Ronald Reagan is escorted as it arrives in Busan, Friday. The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier arrived in the port city ahead of the two countries' joint military exercise, which aims to show their strength against growing North Korean threats. AP-Yonhap

Supercarrier, nuclear-powered submarine set on joint drills next week

By Jung Min-ho

A nuclear-powered U.S. aircraft carrier arrived in the port city of Busan on Friday for its first combined drills with the South Korean Navy around the peninsula in five years, in an apparent show of alliance and strength against North Korea's evolving nuclear threat.

USS Ronald Reagan, a Nimitz-class supercarrier that demonstrates the U.S.' naval might, and its strike group, including USS Chancellorsville, a Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser, and USS Barry, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, docked at the South Korean Fleet Command.

The arrival comes after President Yoon Suk-yeol and his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden agreed on the need to bolster the bilateral defense posture against North Korea during their meeting in New York City on Wednesday (local time). Pyongyang's threat reached a new level earlier this month when it passed a law enshrining the right to "automatically" use preemptive nuclear weapons to protect its regime.

The Reagan, which was carrying dozens of fighter jets and other formidable onboard weapons when it arrived, plans to hold major drills in the East Sea next week. The last time such exercises were held here was in 2017 when the Reagan and two other aircraft carriers conducted drills in response to North Korea's nuclear and missile tests. USS Annapolis, a 6,000-ton nuclear-powered submarine, is also expected to take part in the upcoming drills, South Korean Navy officials said.

Rear Adm. Michael Donnelly, commander of the carrier strike group, center, speaks during a news conference on the deck of USS Ronald Reagan in Busan, Friday. AP-Yonhap

Rear Adm. Michael Donnelly, commander of the Carrier Strike Group 5, said their arrival is a clear demonstration of U.S. commitment to the relationship with "a history of shared blood and common values" and the goal of the planned exercise is to enhance the joint operations capability between South Korea and the U.S. in case of an emergency.

"Our interactions with the ROK (Republic of Korea) Navy are tactically first purposeful in developing interoperability to ensure credible combat power and (it's an) opportunity for us to demonstrate that we stand together," he said.

The South Korean Navy said in a statement that their joint exercise "will strengthen defense posture and show the two allies' strong will for peace and security on the Korean Peninsula."

On Thursday, U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Sung Kim met Kim Gunn, his South Korean counterpart, and Unification Minister Kwon Young-se in Seoul where they shared their common concern over North Korea's escalating nuclear threat.

The meetings were held when North Korea is believed to have completed preparations for its seventh nuclear weapons test and doubts are growing in South Korea over the U.S. "nuclear umbrella" ― its guarantee to defend non-nuclear allies such as South Korea from adversaries armed with nuclear weapons.

A U.S. Navy crew member walks past F/A-18E/F Super Hornet jets on the deck of the USS Ronald Reagan at a port in Busan, Friday. EPA-Yonhap

After North Korea announced the new nuclear law and declared that it will never give up its nuclear arsenal, the U.S. warned in a statement that a North Korean nuclear attack would be met with "an overwhelming and decisive response" without specifically saying whether it will involve a nuclear counterattack.

North Korea has conducted more than 30 weapons tests so far this year, including intercontinental ballistic missiles, and showed clear signs of improving relations with China and Russia ― its key allies, who also share bitter feelings toward the U.S.

Some experts in South Korea, including Park Yong-soo, a professor of international relations at Korea Maritime & Ocean University, have questioned whether the nuclear umbrella is still reliable despite the North Korean weapons believed to be capable of hitting major cities in the U.S. mainland.

North Korea's nuclear threat is also expected to be a key agenda issue when U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris arrives in Seoul on Sept. 29 after she attends the state funeral in Tokyo of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.