Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-seop supervises the training of Chief of Naval Staff
Cancellation of PSI delegation visit and maritime review due to bad weather in Jeju
Defense Minister Lee Jong-seop does not inspect Japanese warships with flags of the Self-Defense Forces. This is because the multinational marine interdiction exercise (Eastern Endeavor 23) scheduled to be held on the 31st has been partially adjusted due to the deteriorating weather in Jeju. Instead of Minister Lee Jong-seop, Navy Chief of Staff Lee Jong-ho plans to supervise the exercise.
On the 30th, the Ministry of National Defense announced to reporters that “the PSI Maritime Interdiction Drill, which will be held on the 31st, will be carried out as an abbreviated drill between multinational warships in the high seas due to deteriorating weather in the training sea area.” did. He added, “It has been adjusted so that only our Navy and Coast Guard ships are anchored in the Jeju Civilian Military Complex and undergo anchorage training, such as boarding inspection procedures.”
As the maritime review was canceled, the anchorage drill in the port on the day will be supervised by the Chief of Naval Staff instead of Defense Minister Lee Jong-seop.
On the 31st, the Ministry of National Defense will host the PSI Maritime Interdiction Drill, which will be held on the high seas in the southeastern part of Jeju as an opportunity to hold a high-level meeting to mark the 20th anniversary of the launch of the Proliferation Prevention Initiative (PSI).
Following the 2010 and 2012 trainings, this is the third exercise conducted by Korea, and forces and personnel from Korea, the United States, Japan, Australia, Singapore, and Canada will participate.
The original plan was to conduct interception and boarding inspections of ships suspected of loading weapons of mass destruction (WMD), and at the site, Minister of Defense Lee Jong-seop and other high-ranking officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and representatives of the countries participating in the PSI high-level meeting planned to board the Marado and observe the maritime interdiction drill. was
After the training, Defense Minister Lee Jong-seop was scheduled to conduct a naval review of the Marado, Wang Geon, Milius, Hamagiri, Anzac, and 5002 ships in that order.
During this process, the crew of the Japanese ship Hamagiri saluted Defense Minister Lee Jong-seop while wearing the flag of the Self-Defense Forces, causing controversy.
Source: Donga
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