The United States is sending the massive aircraft carrier USS George Washington to South Korea this week, the military announced Monday. The deployment is considered a show of force in the aftermath of the sinking of a South Korean warship last March that killed 46 sailors. South Korea and an international team of investigators has blamed the attack on North Korea.
The carrier was expected to be in South Korea's port of Busan by Wednesday and could participate in an coming military exercise. The nuclear-powered carrier, one of the world's largest warships, will be accompanied by the destroyers McCampbell, John S. McCain and Lassen.
Defence Secretary Robert Gates and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton were expected to announce this week more details about the coming joint military exercise. Gates and Clinton were visiting Seoul to meet with their South Korean counterparts.
The military exercise and deployment of the George Washington has been under discussion since shortly after the March attack on the South Korean navy vessel, Cheonan. The Cheonan's sinking was considered South Korea's worst military disaster since the Korean War, which ended in a cease-fire in 1953. No formal peace treaty was ever signed, and more than 28,000 US troops remain stationed in the south with a vow to protect the critical US ally.