International Naval Review Scheduled for October at Cheju Island

Channel A News Top Ten reported today that an international naval review is scheduled for the third week of October 2018 in the Korean territorial waters of Cheju Island. Such events have also taken place in 1998 and 2008. The USS Ronald Reagan is expected to participate along with warships of 15 allies and "friendly countries," according to the broadcast. The presence of the US aircraft carrier and perhaps any nuclear powered submarine that may show up, is the subject of some concern because of a tacit understanding that "strategic" assets such as the USS Reagan not operate in vicinity of Korea while negotiations with North Korea are underway. Last fall, during the height of the nuclear crisis with North Korea, large naval forces operated in the region including three US carriers. Korean naval sources point out this is not a military exercise in the sense of the joint naval exercise conducted by US and Korean ships during the period from October 16 through 20, 2017.

A peripheral issue is the display of the rising sun flag on ships of the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force which are expected to participate. Analysts point out that the same flag was displayed in the prior naval review events of 1998, and 2008. Although display of the flag is prohibited by Korean law, an unnamed South Korean naval source said that "extraterritoriality" applied for the event. The flag is regarded as a symbol of the militarism and imperialism of the Japanese Empire which annexed and occupied Korea from August 1910 to August 1945. During the preparations for the winter Olympics in South Korea this year, Japan formally complained about the so called "unification flag" displayed at Olympic venues in South Korea because they depicted Dokdo (island) as a part of a unified Korea. The set of islands in the East Sea or Sea of Japan, is occupied by the South Koreans, but claimed by Japan as their national territory. The South Korean government removed the island from the unification flag. South Korea's flagship LPH, Dokdo, is named after the island.