South Korea and the US military said they will hold a joint live-fire exercise near the northern border with North Korea this week in a show of strength amid ongoing tensions with the Pyongyang regime.
South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported on Saturday the allies plan to conduct a large-scale live-fire maneuver at the truce village of Panmunjom, just below the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) that divides the Korean peninsula.
The two allies have conducted frequent training exercises to strengthen their combined defensive posture on the Korean Peninsula amid heightened tensions with North Korea’s weapons programs.
The drills are meant to send a “clear message of deterrence” to Pyongyang and demonstrate the allies’ readiness to respond to any potential provocations, a South Korean military official said.
The officials did not reveal specifically which weapons would be employed, but multiple news reports said the drills will include a wide array of artillery and rocket artillery exercises, including multiple launch rocket system, self-propelled howitzers, and tanks.
The exercises come amid stalled negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang, which have been on ice since a second summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ended without an agreement.