U.S. Navy Holds Ceremony To Mark Base Relocation In South Korea

The U.S. Naval Forces stationed in South Korea held a ceremony on Friday to mark the relocation of its base in Seoul to the port city Busan. The U.S. Navy's nuclear-powered submarine USS (United States Ship) North Carolina and South Korea's Aegis Destroyer were anchored next to the base, about 417km (259 miles) south of Seoul. 

COMMANDER OF THE UNITED NATIONS COMMAND, SOUTH KOREA-U.S. COMBINED FORCES COMMAND AND UNITED STATES FORCES KOREA, CURTIS SCAPARROTTI, : "Our two naval commands joined together in one location; an act that reinforces the traits that make our combined force I think great, strong and unique. And that's candid communication, mutual values and constant collaboration," 

The two allies were also expected to begin discussions on the deployment of the advanced Terminal High Altitude Area Defence missile defence system. The joint military drills scheduled to start in March, which in most years last eight weeks and involve hundreds of thousands of South Korean and U.S. troops, will be the largest ever, according to South Korean officials. There are 28,500 U.S. troops stationed in the South as part of combined defence with the South's military of more than 600,000.