South Korea, the United States, and Japan are starting the Freedom Edge trilateral exercises on Wednesday, which will include cyber, air defense, and anti-submarine warfare exercises, Yonhap reported, citing the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).
As noted, the exercises are being conducted in accordance with the agreement of the leaders of the three countries reached in August 2023 at the summit in the American Camp David (Maryland).
The exercises will involve the American aircraft carrier George Washington, destroyers of the South Korean Armed Forces, and the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force.
“The three countries strongly condemned the DPRK’s provocative actions, including the test launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile,” the agency quotes the JCS as saying. The South Korean command calls the exercises a demonstration of “their desire to deter such threats,” which they consider to be the DPRK’s actions.