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| Korean Marines march after landing on a beach during U.S.-Korea joint landing drills as part of the annual joint military exercise Foal Eagle, in Pohang, Korea, in this March 30, 2015, file photo. South Korea and the United States will begin their combined springtime military exercises this week. AP-Yonhap |
South Korea and the United States will begin their combined springtime military exercises this week to further solidify the allies' defense posture, officials in Seoul said Sunday.
The nine-day command post training using a computer simulation is scheduled to kick off Monday and does not include any troop maneuvers, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).
The exercises come amid renewed tensions after the North tested a purported new tactical guided weapon, Saturday, and concerns that it could engage in provocative acts around the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People's Revolutionary Army, April 25.
"The training this time is aimed at enhancing the combined operational capabilities of South Korean and U.S. troops and will serve as an opportunity to further solidify the allies' combined defense posture," the JCS said in a statement.
Based on the allies' contingency plans, the computerized training program involves a series of wartime operational procedures, including defending against potential invaders and counterattacking.
Pyongyang has long criticized the training as a rehearsal for an invasion of the North, though Seoul and Washington have stressed the regular training is defensive in nature.
During the upcoming exercises, the South and the U.S. are unlikely to carry out a key assessment of the former's capabilities to lead in combined defense ― a requirement for the transition of wartime operational control (OPCON) to Seoul from Washington.
During their defense ministerial talks in December, the two sides agreed to conduct the full operational capability (FOC) assessment this year. They are expected to discuss the exact timing of the FOC assessment after the incoming government of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol is launched next month. (Yonhap)
