US, Japan, South Korea to hold military drills to deter North Korea's threat

Washington: In a bid to deter North Korea’s military advancements, the US, Japan and South Korea have announced to hold defence exercises including the regularisation of missile defence and anti-submarine drills.

A joint statement was signed by the three nations during the 13th Defence Trilateral Talks in Washington. The effort will also see an exchange of assessments on the security developments taking place in the Korean Peninsula and the broader region. The three countries will also collaborate on developing concrete ways to deepen trilateral security cooperation.

In the joint statement, US, Japan and South Korea “urged the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPKR) to stop all destabilising activities immediately.” They also warned that if North Korea was to conduct any nuclear test, the three nations will be forced to take strict actions and will invite a “resolute response from the international community.”

It follows North Korea’s announcement on Friday that it had tested a new solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), a development set to “radically promote” its forces, which experts said would facilitate missile launches with little warning.

US, South Korea stage air drills

Hours after North Korea test-fired ‘Hwasong-18’, a new solid-fueled intercontinental ballistic missile in a bid to promote the country’s nuclear counterattack capability, South Korea and the United States held joint air drills, involving at least one B-52H strategic bomber.

Seoul’s defence ministry said that the South Korean Air Force mobilized its F-35A radar-evading fighters and F-15K jets for the drills, while the US side deployed F-16 fighters in addition to the bomber. However, it did not specify in which part of the Korean Peninsula the drills took place.

The defence ministry was quoted in Yonhap News Agency saying, “It is assessed that (the drills) represented a close-knit, coordinated response demonstrating the powerful ‘strength of the alliance’ and the United States’ will to provide extended deterrence against the recent series of North Korean provocations.”

With inputs from agencies

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