US, South Korea begin joint military exercises tomorrow

The joint military exercise between the two allies will begin on August 5 with a computerized command post exercise (CPX). The CPX is scheduled to last for about half a month and is aimed at strengthening response to emergency situations on the Korean Peninsula, the government said.

The US and South Korea will begin joint military exercises tomorrow. Photo: Yonhap

After the CPX, the US and South Korean allies will spend 10 days assessing Seoul's ability to transfer wartime operational control (OPCON) from Washington to Seoul.

Since the Inter-Korean Summit (April 2018) and the US-North Korea Summit (June 2018), the US and South Korean allies have eliminated or scaled down the Key Resolve, Foal Eagle and Ulchi Freedom Guardian exercises. In March, they conducted the Dong Maeng exercise to replace the Key Resolve and Foal Eagle spring exercises.

However, Pyongyang has repeatedly condemned the drills, saying they violate agreements made at previous summits. North Korea said on July 26 that the previous ballistic missile launches were a warning to South Korea over its plans to conduct joint military exercises with the United States and purchase advanced fighter jets from its ally. Previously, North Korea had launched four short-range ballistic missiles in just one week.

The allies will increase surveillance and heighten vigilance in case of additional launches from North Korea during the exercise.