[긴급]미, 핵항모 조지워싱턴호 한국해역 상주배치 추진

미 국방부가 미 7함대에 배치된 핵추진 항공모함 조지워싱턴호를 한국해역에 상주시킬 계획이라고 합니다
익명을 요구한 2명의 국방부 관리가 미국시간 6월2일 이 내용을 발설했고 이번주내[by week's end; 문맥상으로는 6월4일 금요일로 추정됩니다] 최종결정될 것이라고 밝혔습니다

미국시간 6월 3일 오전 ARMY TIMES 에 보도된 내용입니다. DISPATCH, DEPLOYMENT 등의 단어를 사용하고 있습니다

오는 8일부터 실시되는 한미합동 대잠수함훈련에 조지 워싱턴호가 참여하는 것으로 이미 보도됐습니다만
조지 워싱턴호 한국해역 상주배치는 이 훈련과 관계없는 별도의 결정이라고 합니다

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Pentagon considers sending carrier to Korea

원본출처 http://www.armytimes.com/news/2010/06/ap_george_washington_korea_060210/

By Anne Flaherty and Pauline Jelinek - The Associated Press
Posted : Thursday Jun 3, 2010 7:16:44 EDT

WASHINGTON — The U.S. is considering dispatching the aircraft carrier George Washington to the waters where North Korea allegedly sank a South Korean warship, defense officials said Wednesday.

The deployment of the nuclear-powered carrier, one of the world’s largest warships, would represent a major show of force by the U.S., which has vowed to protect South Korea and is seeking to blunt aggression from North Korea.

An international investigation last month blamed North Korea for torpedoing a South Korean navy vessel, the Cheonan, in March, killing 46 sailors.

Two U.S. defense officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the decision had not been made, said that a decision on deployment was likely by week’s end.

Last week, the Pentagon announced that it was planning two major military exercises with South Korea to take place in the “near future.” The exercises were to focus in part on anti-submarine operations.

The officials said the George Washington’s deployment would be separate from the upcoming exercises.

The latest plans to bolster military cooperation in the Yellow Sea was aimed specifically at sending a message to North Korea that the U.S. would help defend South Korea if necessary.

The deployment of the aircraft carrier would be seen as a particularly aggressive move by the United States because of its sheer size. According to a Navy website, the carrier is 244 feet high from keel to mast and can accommodate some 6,250 crew members.

Built in the 1980s, the carrier uses two nuclear reactors that would allow it to steam almost 18 years before needing to refuel.

The sinking of the Cheonan was South Korea’s worst military disaster since the Korean War, which started 60 years ago and ended in a cease-fire in 1953. No formal peace treaty was ever signed, and more than 28,000 U.S. troops remain stationed in the south, a critical regional ally.