Defense chief inspects Freedom Shield drills at military bunker

Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back, front left, and Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Jin Young-seung, front right, visit a basement bunker to inspect military readiness amid the annual springtime Freedom Shield drills between South Korea and the United States, Thursday. Courtesy of Ministry of National Defense

Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back on Wednesday visited an underground bunker of the Capital Defense Command to inspect military readiness amid ongoing key springtime drills between the South Korean and U.S. militaries, his office said.

Ahn urged troops to maintain a robust joint defense posture through "intensive" and "practical" training during his visit to the basement bunker on the 10th day of the 11-day Freedom Shield (FS) exercise, the defense ministry said.

Citing the escalating conflict in the Middle East following U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran last month, Ahn underscored the importance of "high-intensity" military training, saying the intensity of training directly translates into "combat capabilities."

Ahn also visited a joint air defense operations center, where he urged troops to make the utmost efforts to carry out the exercise's remaining field drills, which will continue into next week after FS concludes Thursday.

This year's FS drills were centered on preparing for a conditions-based wartime operational control (OPCON) transfer from Washington to Seoul. The current Lee Jae Myung administration seeks to recover OPCON within his five-year term ending in 2030.