Washington and Seoul have announced that they plan to kick off their annual joint winter war games, codenamed Key Resolve and Foal Eagle, in South Korea on March 2, sources said.
Key Resolve is due to last over a week and will involve a computer-simulated exercise, while the eight-week Foal Eagle drill will include air, ground and maritime deployments.
Hundreds of thousands of American and South Korean troops will take part in the Foal Eagle exercises, which will wrap up on April 24, according to a South Korean Defense Ministry spokesman.
The drills` goal is to ensure the combat readiness of the US and South Korea in the event of a North Korean attack.
Pyongyang has repeatedly resorted to missile tests and bellicose rhetoric in voicing its dissatisfaction with the US-South Korea exercises, which the North says are a rehearsal for the invasion of North Korea.
The Democratic People`s Republic of Korea, which is currently conducting its own winter military exercise, had no immediate response to the announcement of the upcoming drills between Washington and Seoul.
North Korea has been notified of the drills’ schedule and the "non-provocative nature of this training," according to General Curtis Scaparrotti, commander of the allies` Combined Forces Command.
He said that "exercising our multi-national force is an important component of readiness and is fundamental to sustaining and strengthening the alliance.
About 30,000 US troops are currently stationed in South Korea and the US may reportedly take operational command of the allies` combined forces in case of an armed conflict with the North.
US, South Korea Announce Massive Annual War Games
24 February 2015
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Washington and Seoul have announced that they will start their annual joint winter drills in South Korea on March 2.
