The United States and South Korean militaries have started their regular joint armed forces drills aimed at preparing for a contingency on the Korean Peninsula amid the recent brewing tensions with neighbouring North Korea.
The Annual Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise kicked off in South Korea on Monday and will go till August 28. The ten-day joint exercises will see two militaries perform military manoeuvres, including the strategic build-up at the borders in case a potential conflict breaks out with the North.
The ongoing military exercise is the first between the two countries since the new president, Lee Jae-myung, took office in June. The South Korean armed forces said that the drills are being conducted on the same scale as every year.
It said the two forces aim to strengthen the preparedness against the Nuclear, Missile or Drone attacks as North Korea and Russia enter a new era of military partnership. North Korea maintains some 50-odd nuclear weapons and is one of the few elite countries which have successfully produced a nuclear-capable intercontinental Ballistic missile, which could potentially reach the US mainland.
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North Korean Leaders, including Kim Jong Un’s sister, have ruled out any normalisation of ties with South Korea. She recently said, “It would be a mistake if South Korea believed that Pyongyang would initiate or sit down at the table discussing the normalisation between the rival nations.”
Kim Yo Jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and a senior official of the Workers' Party, mentioned the postponement in a statement last week. She indicated that Pyongyang refuses to hold dialogue with Seoul. North Korea strongly opposes the joint exercises and has emphasised it will not hesitate to take countermeasures.
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