S. Korea's Navy kicks off large-scale joint drills in Yellow Sea

SEOUL, Oct. 24 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's Navy said Monday it has started a large-scale exercise in the Yellow Sea on Monday, joined by the Army, the Air Force and the Coast Guard as well as American troops.

The four-day training is being held as part of the annual ongoing Hoguk drills that will run until Oct. 28.

It is aimed at enhancing the military's combined and joint maritime operational capabilities against enemy provocations with a focus on improving capabilities of maritime counter special operation forces and responses to North Korea's provocations near the Northern Limit Line (NLL), the de facto maritime border, the Navy said.

It added more than 20 warships, including Aegis destroyers and frigates, will be mobilized, along with the Army's Apache helicopter and the Air Force's F-15K and F-16 fighter jets. The U.S. Army's Apache helicopters and its Air Force's A-10 aircraft will join the training as well.

Earlier in the day, South Korea's military said it fired warning shots at a North Korean ship that crossed the NLL. The North fired multiple rocket launcher shots into the waters in response.

yunhwanchae@yna.co.kr
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