US and South Korea begin large-scale military and civil exercise Ulchi Freedom Shield

Asia-Pacific, News, US August 22, 2023 , by IRIA No Comments

U.S. and South Korea began large-scale military drills Ulchi Freedom Shield to enhance joint readiness against military threats from North Korea. The exercise will be held from August 21 to 31, 2023, and involve invasion rehearsals and counterattack operations.

The eleven-day-long large-scale annual joint exercise aims at bolstering the mutual defense and preparedness of South Korean and U.S. forces against North Korea’s evolving nuclear and missile threats. The number of events and mutual drills this year exceeds those in previous years.

South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement, Ulchi Freedom Shield 2023 exercise features 30 different training events depicting a real-life war scenario.

A spokesman for the JCS said the latest drills are “designed to be a tough and realistic exercise to strengthen the combined defense posture and alliance response capabilities based on scenarios that reflect diverse threats within the security environment.”

According to the U.S. Navy, “the annual exercise is designed to strengthen the combined defense posture and Alliance response capabilities based on scenarios that reflect diverse threats within the security environment. The rigorous training will ensure the Alliance is ready to defend the Republic of Korea and promote security and stability in Northeast Asia.”

*^{South Korean army K-9 self-propelled howitzers take positions in Paju, near the border with North Korea, on Aug. 22, 2022. (Image Credit: Ahn Young-joon/AP)}*

Apart from the U.S. and South Korean forces, several other contingents from the UN Command (UNC), are participating in the joint military drill in varied capacities. This includes forces from Australia, Canada, France, Great Britain, Greece, Italy, New Zealand, the Philippines, and Thailand. The UNC is a key enforcer of the armistice that ended the 1950-53 Korean War. Additionally, the Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission (Sweden and Switzerland) will observe and monitor the exercises.

Rising tensions

The exercises come at a time when tensions are rising around the Korean Peninsula as North Korea keeps testing its ballistic missiles while threatening the U.S. and its allies, South Korea and Japan, in the region.

South Korea is expecting a rise in military activities and missile tests from North Korea in the coming few months. Last week, the South Korean intelligence agency informed the country’s lawmakers that North Korea is preparing various provocations including intercontinental missiles as well as nuclear threats.

Pyongyang has already condemned the drills and particularly the U.S.’s military activities around its border. On several occasions in the last few months, North Korean officials have threatened to shoot down U.S. fighter jets and surveillance planes if they cross the North Korean aerial space.

North Korea’s missile test

As soon as the exercises started on Monday, North Korea reported a cruise missile launch. North Korea’s state media reported that Kim Jong Un inspected a cruise missile test aboard a warship. The launch was aimed at demonstrating “the feature of its missile system,” and was also designed to “make the seamen skilled at carrying out the attack mission in actual war,” the official North Korea’s state-owned Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

^{North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversees a strategic cruise missile test aboard a navy warship in this undated photo released by North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency. (Image Credit: KCNA/via Reuters)}

The agency said that the test took place when Kim visited the eastern coast, without specifying the date time, and type of the cruise missile. KCNA also released a photo of Kim Jong Un watching the missile being fired from the warship. It reported that Kim hailed the missile launch and the naval forces for maintaining “high mobility and mighty striking power and constant preparedness for combat to cope with sudden situations.”