Air forces of the United States and South Korea on Sunday (March 19) conducted a combined air drill led by B-1B bombers. This drill was part of the ongoing joint drills dubbed “Freedom Shield 23”
A video by South Korea’s defence ministry showed two bombers flying in with South Korean F-35A jets and American F-16.
In addition to this, US soldiers conducted an air assault exercise as a part of ongoing joint drills with South Korean soldiers.
At the Rodriguez Live Complex in Pocheon, north of Seoul, less than 30 km (19 miles) from the heavily fortified border with North Korea, military helicopters transported a M777 Howitzer used in air assault training.
As US-South Korea exercise went on, North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile towards the sea off the east coast of the Korean Peninsula.
A South Korean military statement said that the missile flew some 800 km before hitting a target.
The North on Thursday (March 16) fired a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) into the sea between the Korean peninsula and Japan, hours before South Korea’s president flew to Tokyo for a summit that discussed ways to counter the North.
Pyongyang said Thursday’s launch of its ICBM was a warning against ongoing US-South Korea military drills, state media KCNA reported.
North Korea has carried out unprecedented numbers of missile tests in the past one year. The nuclear-armed nation has drawn international condemnation, particularly from the US.
(With inputs from agencies)
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