South Korea, US kick off annual drills over North's military, cyber threats

South Korea and the United States kicked off annual summertime military exercises on Monday, seeking to boost their joint readiness to fend off North Korea's weapons and cyber threats.

The Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises, set to end on August 29, come as North Korea races to advance its nuclear and missile programs and tries to launch reconnaissance satellites.

The drills will reflect "realistic threats" across all domains, including the North's missile threats and GPS jamming, cyberattacks, and other lessons learned from recent incidents, the two countries' militaries have said.

South Korea will separately carry out the simultaneous government-led Ulchi civil defense drills under the scenario of a nuclear attack by the North, officials said.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol urged a thorough readiness posture against North Korea, calling it "the most reckless and irrational country in the world.

"As seen in Ukraine and the conflicts in the Middle East, war can break out at any time," he told a cabinet meeting.

Reuters