The US, Japan and South Korea began the first trilateral military exercise on the Korean Peninsula on Thursday, South Korean media reported.
The three-day exercise, dubbed “Freedom Edge,” began in international waters south of South Korea’s resort island of Jeju, after the three countries’ defence chiefs agreed to start the drills earlier this month in line with an agreement reached last year.
The JCS said, using the official name of South Korea as RoK:
“Freedom Edge expresses the will of the RoK (Republic of Korea), US and Japan to promote trilateral interoperability and protect freedom for peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific, including the Korean Peninsula.”
The exercise will involve various warships and aircraft from the three sides, including the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, the ROKS Seoae Ryu Seong-ryong, a southern ROKS destroyer, and the Japanese helicopter destroyer JS Ise.
The drill will focus on missile defence, air defence, anti-submarine warfare, search and rescue, maritime interdiction and defensive cyber training, the JCS said, adding that the three sides will continue to expand Freedom Edge in the future.
The Freedom Edge exercise also comes amid growing concerns about deepening military ties between North Korea and Russia.
