South Korea, US army hold joint military drills amid tensions with North
An elite South Korean army unit has conducted a joint military drill with American forces at a training field in Paju, located near the inter-Korean border, provoking the already heightened tensions with the North.
The South Korean Army said in a statement on Friday that “the drill was planned to share warfighting skills between the two countries and improve joint military operations as readiness among the combined defenses is needed after North Korea’s recent consecutive provocations.”
About 800 military officers were mobilized for the drill, which involves the Army Tiger brigade, an elite South Korean unit armed with artificial intelligence technology and the latest weapon systems, and the US Stryker Brigade, a mechanized infantry company.
South Korea recently confirmed discussions with the Americans on its involvement in US nuclear weapons operations amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula. However, US President Joe Biden denied discussions on joint nuclear exercises.
North Korea, for its part, has repeatedly condemned the joint military exercises, depicting these moves as training for an invasion of the North.
To build its defenses’ against foreign invasion, the North test-fired an unprecedented number of missiles in 2022 and went on with its tests in 2023, pressing on with the development of its missiles and nuclear programs.
Media reports speculate the North could conduct a nuclear test for a seventh time as it continues to strengthen its deterrent force against the United States.
South Korea, on the other side of the ledger, has warned of deploying nuclear weapons if tensions with North boil over.
“If the [North Korean nuclear] problem becomes more serious, the Republic of Korea may deploy tactical nuclear weapons or come to possess its own nuclear weapons,” South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol said earlier this week.
“If that happens, it won’t take long, and with our science and technology, we could have [nuclear weapons] sooner as time passes,” Yoon added.
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