BUSAN, South Korea -- The American aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan arrived in South Korea on Thursday for joint military exercises, as North Korea warned the drills would harm progress at international talks on its nuclear program.
Carrying more than 5,000 crew, the nuclear-powered ship docked at a port in the southeastern city of Busan for weeklong war games that start Sunday and involve 29,000 U.S. troops and an undisclosed number of South Korean soldiers.
The U.S. and South Korea characterize the annual drills as purely defensive, but the North has condemned them as a rehearsal for an invasion.
The North's Foreign Ministry on Thursday labeled the drills as "a dangerous provocation that casts a shadow" over last month's landmark deal in which the North pledged initial steps toward dismantling its atomic weapons program.
Meanwhile, Rear Adm. Charlie Martoglio, commander of the U.S. carrier strike group, said the visit showed the importance Washington places on the region.
"Our port visit to Busan ... is a sign of the depth of commitment on the part of the U.S. to the peace and security and stability of the Korean peninsula and the region," Martoglio said.
The Reagan has an undisclosed number of aircraft, including the F18 Super Hornet fighters, said Capt. Terry Kraft.
The carrier is assisted by three other ships, including a cruiser and two destroyers, he said.
The captain said that the U.S. does not typically deploy nuclear weapons on board surface ships, aircraft or attack submarines, but that he could not "confirm the presence or absence of nuclear weapons aboard any of these ships."
In Seoul, about 20 anti-American student activists staged a brief demonstration in front of the U.S. Embassy, demanding the military drills be canceled.
"Stop the joint South Korea-U.S. military exercises that threaten peace on the Korean peninsula," one protest banner read.
About 29,500 U.S. troops are stationed in South Korea as a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War that ended in a cease-fire, not a peace treaty -- leaving the two Koreas technically at war.
(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
