S. Korea, US, Japan kick off 3-way military exercise

South Korea, the United States, and Japan have initiated a five-day joint military exercise named Freedom Edge, commencing on schedule despite recent scaling back of similar drills by U.S. President Donald Trump. The exercise, held in international waters east and south of South Korea's southern island of Jeju, focuses on enhancing operational capabilities and joint response across multiple domains such as maritime, air, and cyber.

Involving major maritime and air assets from the armed forces of the three nations, the drills are overseen by a joint exercise control group to ensure systematic and safe execution. The JCS emphasized that the exercise is an annual defensive drill conducted in accordance with international law and norms, aiming to bolster deterrence and response capabilities against North Korea.

Brief written by urgent.news from The Korea Times's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.