South Korea and the US have announced yet another joint military drill starting next week. The drill would be explicitly aimed at countering the alleged nuclear threat from North Korea, and will involve the civilian administration of South Korea as well, spokespersons from both the US and South Korean militaries said in a joint press conference on August 12.
South Korea’s joint chiefs of staff declared that the drill, which will be part of the annual Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) exercises, will be the “first ever government drill that stimulates North Korea’s [alleged] nuclear attack,” The Korea Times reported.
The proposed military exercises would be held between August 19 to 29, and will be divided into two phases. The first phase, starting from August 19, would involve government officials and end on August 23. The second phase, between August 26 and 29, would be solely conducted by both the South Korean and United States militaries. The exercises would involve the Air Force, the Army, and the Navy.
“The military will enhance the nation’s overall capacity for total war in order to protect the lives and safety of the people through government agencies’ wartime preparedness exercises and actual drills, including responses to cyberattacks and terrorism,” said Col. Lee Sung Joon, spokesperson of South Korea’s joint chief of staff.
Approximately 19,000 troops from South Korea will participate in the exercises which will involve dealing with missile attacks, jamming and cyber attacks and live fire exercises. The exercise would involve a “nationwide civil defense evacuation drill” on August 22, “simulating a North Korean nuclear attack,” Lee Sung Joon said.
The US spokesperson Ryan Donald did not specify the number of US troops to participate in the exercises. However, he confirmed that the “exercise will reflect realistic threats [coming allegedly from North Korea] across all domains.”
Nodutdol, a Korean diaspora and anti-imperialist organization based in the United States, has staged a response against escalating military drills by launching their new campaign, “US out of Korea!” The campaign will include several mass mobilizations including a protest in Los Angeles on Thursday, in San Francisco on Saturday, and in New York City on Sunday.
Asian NATO
Recently, alleged threats from North Korea have been used by the US military to carry out various drills in the region. The proposed drills would be the second of such exercises in less than three months, as between June 26 and 29 South Korea, Japan and the US forces held a joint military exercise called “Freedom Edge.” North Korea denounced the development as an attempt to create an Asian NATO.
The US already has numerous military bases in South Korea, most of them dating back to the Korean war in the mid 1950s. It is also a major provider of arms to both South Korea and Japan.
The prolonged presence of US forces and the US’s increased attempts to militarize the region has pushed countries such as North Korea to prepare for its defenses. North Korea has deemed the increased number of military drills to be provocative, and a preparation to launch attacks. The North Korean government has warned both South Korea and the US that it may lead to catastrophic consequences. North Korean leadership has expressed apprehensions that such exercises will enable war to break out in the region at any moment.
North Korea is not alone with such apprehensions. China too has claimed that the US is pushing its allies in the region, namely Japan and South Korea, to create an “Asian NATO.”
Such apprehensions are not based only on joint military exercises. There is an unprecedented cooperation growing between Japan, South Korea and NATO in recent times.
NATO has openly declared that it has increased engagement with its “partners,” meaning Japan and South Korea, in order to address alleged “global challenges and cross cutting security issues” in the region. It claims that NATO and “its partners in the region share common values and a goal of working together to uphold the rules based international order.”
Japan and South Korea, along with New Zealand and Australia, have started participating in the annual NATO summits since 2022. Both have been supplying weapons to Ukraine in its war with Russia. These nations have recently opposed Russia signing a mutual defense treaty with North Korea.
