The South Korean Navy's 1,300-ton submarine Lee Eokgi is participating in a multinational naval exercise designed to promote cooperation and interoperability in the submarine rescue arena in Asian waters, Navy officials said. The Pacific Reach 2007, held in the waters off the HMAS Stirling Naval base in Western Australia from Nov. 26 to Dec. 7, brings nine Asia-Pacific naval forces together to improve submarine rescue capabilities and make them familiar with each other's submarine rescue equipment. The drill is also aimed at developing new submarine rescue techniques. Other participating nations are the United States, Australia, Japan, the United Kingdom, Canada, Singapore, China and Malaysia.