US, South Korea, Japan and two other countries have conducted a missile warning exercise

On 16th August, the Japanese Ministry of Defence announced that five nations, Japan, the United States, South Korea, Australia and Canada, have participated in the “Pacific Dragon” missile warning exercise off the coast of Hawaii, during 8th to 14th of August.

According to the ministry’s Maritime Staff Office, the Maritime Self -Defence Force’s destroyer Haguro, as well as destroyers from the United States, South Korea, and Australia, and a Canadian Navy frigate have participated in the drill. This confirmed the procedure for launching and intercepting simulated ballistic missiles, through using a test range in Hawaii.

This exercise is conducted based on the information sharing agreement between the defence authorities of Japan, the United States and South Korea which verified the use of shared radar detection information between the naval vessels of three countries. It tested the ability of the systems to detect and report the trajectories of missiles.

The drill aimed to strengthen cooperation between the participating countries, especially as North Korea is increasing its nuclear and missile development. It was on 11th June that former Defence Minister Kishi met with US Secretary of Defence, Austin, and the South Korean Defence Minister, Lee Jong in Singapore to agree the timetable of this exercise.