"U.S. Navy reviewing resumption of exercises in the West Sea"... Simultaneous containment of North Korea and China

<Anchor>

The U.S. Navy, which has refrained from entering Korea's West Sea due to concerns about a dispute with China, has revealed its intention to consider a drill to enter the West Sea.

It is also said that it is considering setting up a homeport for US Navy vessels in Korea.

Kim Tae-hoon, a defense reporter, reports.

<Reporter>

On the 12th, US Navy Chief of Staff Michael Gilday mentioned the possibility of US Navy warships training in the West Sea at an online forum hosted by the Korea-US Institute.

[Michael Gilday/U.S. Chief of Naval Staff: We are well aware that the West Sea is a hot issue.

If the US Navy is to conduct exercises in the West Sea, it must be able to deliver accurate messages to suit specific purposes.]

This means that the exercises in the West Sea will be carefully reviewed according to the security situation between the US and China and the US and North Korea.

The United States sent a strategic bomber, the B-1B Lancer, to the vicinity of Gunsan in the West Sea in an unusual way during the ROK-US joint air force training in November last year.

Now, it looks like the U.S. Navy is trying to advance into the West Sea.

Gilday went one step further and said that setting up a home port for US warships in Korea targeting China and North Korea, like the Yokosuka base in Japan, is also a consideration.

[Michael Gilday/U.S. Navy Chief of Staff: (Installation of the U.S. Navy's homeport in Korea) is absolutely not ruling out the option.

We will discuss this option with the Indo-Pacific Commander.]

"Security cooperation between South Korea, the United States and Japan is not a luxury, but a necessity," he said, suggesting a plan for trilateral warships to conduct combined exercises outside the Indo-Pacific region.

Regarding President Yoon Seok-yeol's statement that if North Korea's threat grows, he can also arm himself with nuclear weapons, he recalled the US promise of extended deterrence, including nuclear weapons, and emphasized that the regime would come to an end if North Korea uses nuclear weapons.

(Video editing: Lee Seung-hee)