U.S. marines (R and 2nd R) and South Korean soldiers conduct a joint military drill at the U.S. army's Rodriguez range in Pocheon, about 70 km (43 miles) northeast of Seoul and about 15 km (9 miles) south of the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas, during a photo opportunity March 1, 2008. The Key Resolve/Foal Eagle Exercise, an annual military exercise between South Korean and U.S. troops, will be held across the country from March 2-7.

　　SEOUL, March 2 (Xinhua) -- South Korea and the United States on Sunday launched a six-day massive joint military exercise across South Korea despite Pyongyang's strong opposition.

　　A great portion of the 650,000-strong South Korean troops and about 18,000 U.S. troops, including 12,000 stationed in South Korea and 6,000 others reinforced from the U.S. mainland and Pacific bases, will participate in the "Key Resolve" exercise scheduled from Sunday to Friday, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency quoted military sources as saying.

　　The "Key Resolve" exercise will replace the RSOI drills and is designed to provide training for the South Korean-U.S. Combined Forces Command in the various aspects of reception, staging, onward movement, and integration of forces from bases outside of South Korea, the S. Korean-U.S. Combined Forces Command (CFC) said in a news release early last month.

　　The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has warned against the joint military drills, accusing that South Korea and the United States are staging a "massive war game" in preparation to invade DPRK.

　　The San Diego-based USS Nimitz, a 93,000-ton U.S. aircraft carrier that can accommodate over 6,000 crew members and more than100 aircraft, has arrived in South Korea and will join the drill. It is the first time the U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carrier participates in the South Korea-U.S. joint military exercise.

　　According to Yonhap, the USS Nimitz, the world's largest of its kind, is accompanied by five other ships, including the nuclear-powered U.S. submarine USS Ohio, two U.S. Aegis destroyers, the 8,300-ton USS John S. McCain and the 9,200-ton USS Chaffee.

U.S. marines (2nd L and R) and South Korean soldiers conduct a joint military drill at the U.S. army's Rodriguez range in Pocheon, about 70 km (43 miles) northeast of Seoul and about 15 km (9 miles) south of the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas, during a photo opportunity March 1, 2008.