by Josh Smith
SEOUL (Reuters) – The United States and South Korea will conduct large-scale military exercises from March 13 to 23, officials from both countries said on Friday, adding that the aim was to strengthen the defensive posture of the two allies amid heightened tensions with North Korea.
Called “Freedom Shield”, these maneuvers are intended to prepare joint response capabilities in the event of “a changing security environment, aggression from North Korea”, taking into account the lessons of the recent conflicts and wars, the US and South Korean armies said in a statement released at a press briefing in Seoul.
Previous exercises conducted by Washington and Seoul angered Pyongyang, which said it saw evidence of the hostile attitude of the United States and its allies. North Korea conducted ballistic missile tests in response and threatened to use its nuclear arsenal.
Presented as defensive in nature, the “Freedom Shield” exercises will be the largest carried out by the United States and South Korea since 2017, before former US President Donald Trump decided to reduce the scale of the attack. these maneuvers in order to facilitate a diplomatic opening with North Korea.
Health restrictions linked to COVID-19 subsequently forced Washington and Seoul to review the format of these military exercises, even as talks with Pyongyang fell into an impasse.
(Report Josh Smith, with Hyunsu Yim; French version Jean Terzian)
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