Anika Begay
By Hyonhee Shin
SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea and the United States will begin annual summer military exercises next week to boost their ability to counter North Korea’s weapons and cyber threats, officials said on Monday.
The Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises, scheduled for August 19-29, come as North Korea continues to develop its nuclear and missile programs and seeks to launch reconnaissance satellites.
The exercises will reflect “realistic threats” across all domains, including missile threats from the North, as well as GPS interference, cyber attacks and other lessons learned from recent incidents, the two countries’ militaries said in a statement.
The alliance will “further strengthen its capability and posture to deter and defend against weapons of mass destruction,” Col. Lee Sung-jun, spokesman for South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at a briefing.
Lee said the South Korean military would also support the government’s simultaneous Ulchi civil defense exercises, one of which was set against the backdrop of a nuclear attack by North Korea.
About 19,000 South Korean soldiers, like last year, will take part in 48 rounds of combined field training, including field maneuvers, live-fire exercises and amphibious drills, he said.
Colonel Ryan Donald, spokesman for U.S. Forces Korea, said the annual exercises are among the largest in the Indo-Pacific region and will also include member states of the United Nations Command.
Pyongyang has long denounced its allies for stoking tensions with military exercises, calling them dress rehearsals for nuclear war.
Seoul and Washington say the exercises are defensive and in response to threats from the North.
