South Korea, US set to start largest-ever live-fire military drills

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

National

Mon, October 2, 2023 | 08:01

Defense

South Korea, US set to start largest-ever live-fire military drills

Posted : 2023-05-04 16:25

Updated : 2023-05-05 16:57

U.S. soldiers from the 2nd Infantry Division participate in the 2023 Best Squad competition at Camp Casey in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, Thursday. South Korea and the U.S. plan to conduct their largest-ever live-fire exercises for three weeks starting May 25. Yonhap

By Jung Min-ho

South Korea and the United States will conduct their largest-ever live-fire military exercises for three weeks starting May 25, according to military officials, Thursday.

A diverse range of weapons systems, such as fighter jets, AH-64E Apache attack helicopters, multiple rocket launchers and K2 Black Panther tanks, are expected to be mobilized for the drills that will continue until June 15 at the Seungjin Fire Training Field in Pocheon, Gyeonggi Province.

Speaking to reporters at a briefing, an official at the Ministry of National Defense said the drills are aimed at improving the allies' interoperability and readiness against intensifying security threats from North Korea.

"Marking the 75th anniversary of the establishment of [South Korea's] armed forces and the 70th anniversary of the South Korea-U.S. alliance … The size [of the exercises] will likely be the largest ever," the official said.

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In addition to firing drills, the militaries of the two countries have been planning scenario-based training exercises, including how to operate loitering munitions, also known as suicide drones, in the initial phases of a potential armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula.

"Under a scenario of North Korea making a provocation, South Korea and the U.S. will show how to finish their mission with their overwhelming capabilities in the shortest possible time while keeping the number of casualties to a minimum," another official said.

The ministry plans to invite government officials, members of the National Assembly's defense committee and representatives of major defense companies to the event.

The Joint Firing Destruction Drills have been conducted 11 times since 1977. Former President Park Geun-hye watched them in person at the training facility on Aug. 28, 2015, amid rising military tensions following North Korea's threat to destroy South Korea's loudspeakers set up near the inter-Korean border.

Tensions have been building again over the past week since President Yoon Suk Yeol and his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden announced the Washington Declaration, in which the two vowed to strengthen cooperation against North Korea's nuclear threats. In a rare direct warning to the regime, Biden said a nuclear attack on his country or its allies would immediately be met with a response that will end the long reign of the Kim family in the North.

North Korea denounced what was agreed during the Yoon-Biden summit in Washington, including the launch of the first official communication channel between Seoul and Washington over the use of U.S. nuclear weapons involving the Korean Peninsula.

In its latest condemnation, the North's official Korean Central News Agency said Thursday that the whole country had been "enraged with the will to destruct the enemies." It also blamed South Korea and the U.S. for carrying out joint exercises and vowed to continue to develop its nuclear weapons. Previously, Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, threatened to take "more decisive" action against the allies.

But there have been no North Korean weapons tests since. Asked about the border situation, an official at the defense ministry said there were no notable signs.

mj6c2@koreatimes.co.kr