The U.S. Department of Defense said that the ongoing Vigilant Storm air drills between the U.S. and South Korea are a defensive and long planned exercise, after North Korea accused the allies of carrying out a military provocation against the regime.

In a press briefing on Tuesday, Pentagon spokesperson Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said the exercise “is a long-planned exercise focused on enhancing interoperability of our forces to work together to defend the Republic of Korea and our allies in the region.”

The spokesperson explained that about 240 aircraft from the and thousands of soldiers from both countries are participating in the exercise, which will strengthen the operational and tactical capabilities, combined air operations and support their strong combined defense posture.

The comments followed a question about North Korea’s earlier warning that it could consider "more powerful follow-up measures" in response to military provocations by the U.S., taking issue with the Vigilant Storm air drills, which Ryder refused to address directly.

Meanwhile, the spokesperson said that U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin is looking forward to meeting with South Korean defense minister Lee Jong-sup for the Security Consultative Meeting(SCM) set for Thursday at the Pentagon.

Ryder said that this year's SCM will discuss and confirm the allies' commitment to developing the South Korea-U.S. alliance in a complementary and sustainable manner.