美韩举行联合反潜演习

The United States and South Korea have kicked off a major anti-submarine drill, weeks after North Korea claimed it had successfully tested a submarine-launched ballistic missile.

The South\'s Defense Ministry released a statement Monday, calling the drill "the largest joint anti-submarine exercise the allies have ever staged, in terms of its scale and number of vessels involved."

The exercise, which will run through Wednesday in waters off the southern resort island of Jeju, involves more than 10 vessels, including a South Korean Aegis destroyer, as well as submarines surveillance planes and helicopters.

The drills come amid growing concern about the expansion of the North\'s nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs.

韩国国防部星期一发表声明说，就演练内容以及参与舰只数量而言，此次演习都是韩美迄今最大规模的反潜演习。

演习将进行到星期三，地点是韩国南部济州岛附近海域，10多艘舰船参加演习，包括一艘韩国宙斯盾级驱逐舰以及反潜侦察机和直升机。

在美韩举行军演之际，朝鲜核武器及弹道导弹项目的扩大引起越来越多的关注。