ⓒYONHAP News

South Korea and the United States kicked off large-scale combined military drills, dubbed the "Ulchi Freedom Shield" (UFS), on Monday.

 

With the exercises, the government and the military seek to improve their capabilities to execute an all-out war in preparation for provocation by North Korea and a full-scale war by practicing pan-government crisis management and assistance procedures for joint operations. 

 

The UFS exercises, which will run through September 1, consist of two parts – training for North Korean attacks and defending the greater Seoul area, and training for counterattack operations to secure the safety of the capital region.

 

The exercises will include various field training drills, including battalion-level training for weapons of mass destruction elimination operations, as well as computer-simulated command post exercises.

 

The South Korean military chief within the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command(CFC) took charge of the combined military drills.

According to U.S. Forces Korea on Wednesday, Gen. Paul LaCamera, the CFC chief, switched roles with deputy commander Gen. Ahn Byung-seok of the South Korean Army.

Ahn has taken the driver's seat as a part of a full operational capability evaluation of the allies' future Combined Forces Command under Washington's conditions-based transfer of wartime operational control to Seoul.

Such an arrangement was agreed to by the two sides' defense chiefs when they held talks last December.

The North’s propaganda website Uriminzokkiri on Tuesday described the UFS joint drills as “a most daring exercise to invade North Korea.”

It said the notion that the drills are aimed at guaranteeing peace and safety is absurd, likening such claims to an arsonist vowing to put out fires. It added that the exercises are pushing Korean Peninsula affairs toward a dangerous state.

Another North Korean propaganda outlet, Maeari, denounced the South Korean government, saying Seoul is wasting taxpayers’ money on high-tech weapons and conducting drills to invade the North, further aggravating its economic difficulties and the people’s livelihoods.

On Tuesday, several Russian military aircraft violated South Korea's air defense identification zone, in what some speculate was a protest against the launch of the UFS drills.

According to the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Russian military planes entered the Korean Air Defense Identification Zone(KADIZ) in the East Sea. The JCS said the South Korean military responded with standard tactical measures, involving the scrambling of fighter jets and verbal warning issuance.

Earlier in the day, Russia’s state-run Sputnik News said two Tu-95MS bombers made a scheduled flight over the East Sea, noting that the South Korean Air Force mobilized F-16 fighter jets in response.

The Russian media outlet added the pair of bombers was escorted by Su-30 fighter jets. No advance notification was given by Russia regarding the matter.