U.S. shows its power to N. Korea with drills Military officials say that despite threats, Pyongyang staying clear

Lee Jin-man / AP

U.S. fighters take off from the flight deck of the Nimitz-class USS George Washington for joint military exercises between the U.S. and South Korea in South Korea's East Sea on Monday, July 26.

ABOARD THE USS GEORGE WASHINGTON — The East Sea off the coast of the Korean peninsula roiled with U.S. and South Korean ships, submarines, fighter jets and helicopters — high-profile military maneuvers intended to show North Korea that it is being watched.

Military officials said that despite threats of retaliation, North Korea was staying clear. Most of the firepower for the four-day exercises — which North Korea condemns — has been flying off the decks of the USS George Washington, a U.S. supercarrier that can carry up to 70 aircraft and more than 5,000 sailors and aviators.
Washington and Seoul are hoping the drills running through Wednesday— and the deployment of the most potent symbol of the U.S. Navy's reach — will send a powerful message to North Korea in the wake of the March sinking of a South Korean warship that killed 46 sailors. An international investigation determined the ship was sunk by torpedo, likely in a sneak attack by a North Korean submarine.
"The message is in the eye of the beholder," said Rear Adm. Daniel Cloyd. "But we would hope that they would take this and messages in the future as a message of resolve. We hope this will give them pause."
North Korea — which has denied any connection to the sinking — has threatened to counter the maneuvers with some sort of military show of its own. But as the drills entered their third day Tuesday, South Korea's military said there have been no signs that the North will make good on its saber-rattling rhetoric.
Cmdr. Ray Hesser, head of an anti-submarine helicopter squadron on the George Washington, said North Korean submarines are largely restricted to shallow, coastal waters.
"We're not expecting to see them out here," he said. "I would not think they would be willing or wanting to come all the way out here."