Ulchi Freedom Shield

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 2

The South Korea-United States drills, called the Ulchi Freedom Shield, are scheduled to run until September 1. They are tri-service drills involving thousands of troops as well as live-fire exercises.

• South Korea and the United States began their largest joint military drills since 2017. 

• The military drills included the resumption of field training. These joint military drills are designed to test readiness against North Korea’s missile tests.
• These military and civil drills “are aimed at improving the country’s preparedness to match the changing patterns of war, with evolving cyber threats against key facilities such as chip factories and supply chains”.
• The drills will include a rehearsal of “scenarios, such as responding to North Korea’s attacks on key industrial facilities including an airport, a semiconductor factory, or a nuclear power plant
• These joint drills come after North Korea rejected South Korea’s proposals that Pyongyang give up its nuclear capabilities in phases, in return for economic benefits.