South Korean Marines have joined a major US-led multinational exercise in Thailand as part of efforts to enhance their coordination with forces from other countries, officials said Tuesday.
The annual Cobra Gold exercise kicked off last Tuesday for an 11-day run, involving more than 200 South Korean Marines and various military hardware, including K-55 self-propelled howitzers, according to the Marine Corps.
Alongside US, Thai, Indonesian, Japanese, Malaysian and Singaporean forces, South Korean troops staged various drills, including a combined amphibious landing exercise at a beach in southern Thailand from Saturday to Monday.
Some 600 South Korean, US and Thai Marines took part in the amphibious landing drills that mobilized amphibious assault vehicles and landing craft, it said.
The exercise also involved training in space operations, which South Korean troops fully participated in for the first time this year after taking part as observers last year.
Launched in 1982, Cobra Gold focuses on training multinational forces for a range of procedures aimed at stabilizing a region embroiled in a virtual armed conflict.
South Korea has formally taken part in the exercise since 2010 after attending it as an observer from 2002 to 2009. (Yonhap)
herald@heraldcorp.com
