US and Its Allies Hold Military Drills Targeting North Korea and China

The US, South Korea and Japan participated in ballistic missile defense exercises off the coast of Hawaii last week, resuming joint military drills targeting North Korea and China, the Pentagon said on Tuesday. This is the first time since 2017 that the three countries have held such exercises.

The Pentagon said in a statement that the missile warning and ballistic missile search and track exercises, which took place during the multinational Pacific Dragon exercise from August 8th to 14th, demonstrated the three countries’ commitment to address the challenges posed by North Korea, protect common security, and support the rules-based international order.

According to the statement, participants shared tactical data link information under a three-parties information-sharing agreement. The US-led joint missile defense efforts have been a pain point for China, which retaliated financially for South Korea’s 2016 decision to receive US Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missiles. The National Defense Ministry of South Korea also confirmed on Tuesday that South Korean troops will resume long-suspended on-site training during the South Korea-US joint military exercise from August 22nd to September 1st.