US version of Iron Dome air defense system deployed to USFK

Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. Randy George poses for a group photo with leaders from the 35th Air Defense Artillery Brigade and soldiers from the 6th Battalion, 52nd Air Defense Artillery Regiment, in front of a launcher indirect fire protection capability system at a Patriot tactical site, Monday. Courtesy of the Pentagon's Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS)

A new air defense system designed to counter cruise missiles and drones has been deployed to the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK), photos showed Thursday, in the latest arrival of advanced weapons systems to the Korean Peninsula.

Photos uploaded on the Pentagon's Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS) earlier this week showed U.S. Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. Randy George and officials posing for a photo in front of an Indirect Fire Protection Capability (IFPC) system during his visit to South Korea.

"Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. Randy George meets with leaders from the 35th Air Defense Artillery Brigade and Soldiers from 6th Battalion, 52nd Air Defense Artillery Regiment, in front of a launcher indirect fire protection capability system at a Patriot tactical site," according to one of the photo captions.

The IFPC system is a "mobile, ground-based weapon system designed to defeat cruise missiles, unmanned aircraft systems and rocket, artillery, and mortars," according to the U.S. Army.

The system is called the U.S. version of the Iron Dome, an Israeli air defense architecture intended to intercept hostile short-range rockets and artillery shells.

The advanced system works to "bridge the gap between short-range air defense (SHORAD) systems, the Patriot air and missile defense system, and the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system."

The deployment of the new system comes in what appears to be efforts to better respond to possible drone threats as China and North Korea are sharpening their capabilities involving the unmanned assets.

The USFK described the latest deployment as part of efforts to uphold its "ironclad" commitment to defending South Korea through "advanced, layered capabilities" amid a changing security environment.

"The U.S.-ROK Alliance is modernizing to keep pace with a changing security environment, ensuring our combined posture credibly deters aggression from adversaries and addresses broader regional challenges," it said on the deployment. ROK refers to the acronym of South Korea's official name, the Republic of Korea.

"USFK, in close coordination with our Republic of Korea allies, continually adjusts its posture to maintain a robust defense against any threat."

In a separate release on George's visit, the Eighth Army said it "showcased efforts in long-range fires, data integration, multi-domain operations, and unmanned systems -- all designed to support faster decision-making and more agile mission execution in support of the ROK-U.S. alliance."