South Korea’s military released video footage showing a joint air power demonstration with the United States on Tuesday (June 7) to display their readiness to North Korea.
The joint air readiness drill came during a visit by U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, who said there would be a strong and clear response if North Korea were to conduct a nuclear test.
The U.S. and South Korean militaries also launched eight ballistic missiles off the country’s east coast on Monday in response to a North Korean missile display a day earlier that extended a provocative streak in weapons demonstrations.
South Korea’s military on Sunday detected North Korea firing eight short-range missiles over 35 minutes from at least four different locations, including from western and eastern coastal areas and two inland areas north of and near the capital, Pyongyang, in what appeared to be a single-day record for the country’s ballistic launches.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol, who took office last month, has vowed to take a tougher line against the North and agreed with U.S. President Joe Biden at a May summit in Seoul to upgrade joint military drills and their combined deterrence stance.