SEOUL-- The Navy will have a combined training with a British aircraft carrier strike group in waters off the Korean Peninsula next week, the defense ministry said Wednesday, after the carrier's planned port call was called off due to COVID-19.
The training for humanitarian and disaster relief missions and scaled-back exchange activities will take place from Monday to Wednesday in consideration of the pandemic, according to the ministry.
The aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth had planned a port call in the southeastern city of Busan, but the two countries decided to cancel the plan due to infections reported aboard the strike group vessels and the fourth wave of the pandemic in South Korea.
South Korea reported 2,155 new coronavirus cases Wednesday, with Seoul alone reporting a record high daily caseload of 677.
The 64,000-ton Queen Elizabeth and the strike group embarked on a seven-month world tour in May.
The fleet conducted joint exercises with India and Singapore, and made a port call in Guam. After the joint maneuvers with South Korea, it plans to travel to Japan, officials said.
Source: Yonhap News Agency