South Korea and the US launch annual exercises on North Korean military and cyber threats

A soldier from the U.S. Army's 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, prepares for a shooting exercise at the Rodriguez Live Fire Complex in Pocheon, South Korea, August 14, 2024. File | Image credit: Reuters

South Korea and the United States began their annual summer military exercises on Monday (August 19, 2024) to strengthen their joint readiness to counter North Korean weapons and cyber threats.

The Ulchi Freedom Shield drills, scheduled to end on Aug. 29, come as North Korea advances its nuclear and missile programs and seeks to launch reconnaissance satellites. The drills will reflect “realistic threats” across all domains, including the North's missile threat, but also GPS jamming, cyberattacks and other lessons learned from recent incidents, both countries' militaries said.

“South Korea will separately conduct government-led civil defense drills in Ulchi in parallel in the event of a nuclear attack by the North,” officials said.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol urged a comprehensive preparedness stance toward North Korea, calling it “the most reckless and irrational country in the world.”

“As we have seen in Ukraine and the conflicts in the Middle East, war can break out at any time,” he said at a cabinet meeting. “The nature of war has also changed compared to the past. It is being waged in a hybrid form that mixes regular, irregular and cyber warfare, and even public opinion and psychological warfare using fake news.”

“About 19,000 South Korean soldiers will participate, similar to last year. There will be 48 rounds of combined field training, including field maneuvers, live firing and amphibious exercises,” Yoon said.

Pyongyang has long accused its allies of stoking tensions with their military exercises and describes them as rehearsals for nuclear war.

Seoul and Washington say the exercises are defensive in nature and a response to threats from the North.