The 8,200-ton destroyer left Jeju Naval Base on Monday and will join the exercise, which will take place in waters off Hawaii from late June through July, according to the Navy.
It will be the first RIMPAC participation for the Jeongjo the Great, which was commissioned in December 2024. The 3,000-ton submarine Dosan Ahn Chang-ho and the P-8A maritime patrol aircraft will also take part in the exercise for the first time.
The Dosan Ahn Chang-ho, along with the frigate Daejeon, will move to Hawaii after completing a combined cooperation exercise with Canada. The landing ship Cheonjabong is also set to head to Hawaii after conducting a search and rescue exercise, or SAREX, with Japan’s Aegis destroyer Kongo in international waters southeast of Jeju on June 7.
RIMPAC is a biennial multinational naval exercise hosted by the U.S. 3rd Fleet to enhance participating countries’ ability to protect sea lines of communication, respond jointly to maritime threats and improve interoperability and operational capabilities among allied and partner forces.
This year marks the 30th edition of the exercise. South Korea first joined RIMPAC in 1990 and will be participating for the 19th time this year.
During this year’s exercise, the South Korean military will serve for the first time as the Combined Force Maritime Component Commander, or CFMCC. South Korea will become the fourth country to take on the role and the first Asian country to do so.
The Navy said the exercise is expected to provide an opportunity to strengthen South Korea’s military capabilities ahead of the planned transfer of wartime operational control from Washington to Seoul.
Rear Adm. Kim In-ho, commander of the Republic of Korea Navy’s Maritime Task Flotilla and the officer who will serve as the CFMCC, said the assignment marks a shift in South Korea’s role from a participating country to a command nation.
“Taking on the command role for the first time means we have moved beyond being a participating country and have advanced to the position of a command nation,” Kim said.
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