This summer’s combined military exercise between South Korea and the United States will come to a close on Tuesday, drawing attention to whether North Korea will cease its recent string of missile provocations.

The two allies have been conducting largely computer-based combined command post training since August 11. The main thrust of the exercise is preparing for the transfer of wartime operational control, or OPCON, from Washington to Seoul.

Deputy Commander of South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command Choi Byung-hyuk took charge of the joint drill while U.S. Forces Korea Commander Robert Abrams acted as vice commander. 

It is the first time a South Korean general has assumed the role of a commander in a drill between the two allies.

North Korea has strongly protested the drill with a series of missile and rhetorical provocations, saying it impedes efforts to resolve peninsular disputes diplomatically.