Six countries to simulate Asian naval security drill

Coastguards from the United States, Japan, China, South Korea, Canada and Russia will hold a joint maritime exercise for six days from Saturday, chasing a ship suspected of carrying weapons of mass destruction. Officials said this week it would be the first time China had taken part in such a joint exercise at sea. The operations are based on a scenario that the ship with the suspicious freight, scheduled to make a port call in Shanghai, rejects Chinese requests to give details of its cargo, the organizers said.