[Yang Nakgyu's Defence Club] US Nuclear Umbrella Assembles... August ROK-US Joint Exercise Schedule Confirmed

70th Anniversary of the Korea-US Alliance
Large-scale UFS Exercise from August 15
US Strategic Assets Mobilized · Possibility of Applying 'Operation Plan 2022'

The second half of this year’s South Korea-U.S. “Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) Exercise,” starting in August, is expected to involve the largest deployment of strategic assets ever, marking the 70th anniversary of the South Korea-U.S. alliance and the armistice agreement.

According to government officials on the 28th, the second half training will begin with a Crisis Management Exercise (CMX), a preparatory drill, from August 15, followed by Part 1 from the 21st to the 25th, and Part 2 from the 28th to the 31st. The South Korea-U.S. conducts the “Freedom Shield (FS) Exercise” in the first half of the year and the “Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) Exercise” in the second half.

This joint exercise is expected to see the deployment of a large-scale U.S. strategic asset. Previously, in September last year, South Korea and the U.S. held the 3rd High-Level Extended Deterrence Strategy Committee (EDSCG) meeting, where the U.S. pledged to “strengthen cooperation with South Korea to ensure the timely and effective deployment and operation of strategic assets in the region.”

Strategic assets refer to weapons through which the U.S. can provide extended deterrence to its allies, including intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), strategic bombers such as the B-1, B-2, and B-52, nuclear-powered submarines and aircraft carriers, and F-35 stealth fighters capable of carrying tactical nuclear weapons (nuclear bombs).

In the first half joint exercise in March this year, the B-1B strategic bomber, nicknamed the “Death’s Swan,” was deployed. For the second half exercise, the B-52H “Stratofortress” strategic bomber, recently redeployed to the U.S. territory of Guam in the Pacific, is expected to participate. The B-52, along with the B-1B Lancer and B-2 Spirit, is one of the U.S.’s three major strategic bombers, capable of flying supersonically up to 14,000 km without refueling at an altitude of 15,000 meters to drop nuclear bombs.

Each military branch is currently coordinating schedules for field training exercises (FTX) as part of the second half training, where the deployment of U.S. strategic assets is also highly likely.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The biggest focus of this year’s second half South Korea-U.S. joint exercise is the possible deployment of U.S. strategic assets and the application of the newly created “Operation Plan (OPLAN) 2022.” The OPLAN is designed to counter nuclear and missile threats, and OPLAN 2022 significantly increases the number of Joint Defense Point Intercepts (JDPI) that South Korea and the U.S. must target, making the deployment of U.S. strategic assets inevitable. Typically, joint exercises are divided into Part 1, a defensive exercise, and Part 2, an offensive exercise. However, in the first half exercise this year, the division was not made to reflect operational continuity, but in the second half, it will be conducted as originally planned in two parts. This appears to consider various variables that may arise when reflecting the new operation plan. A military official also said, “If the South Korea-U.S. joint exercise is divided into Parts 1 and 2, various scenarios can be applied depending on the situation.”

North Korea’s backlash is also expected during the South Korea-U.S. joint exercise period. During the joint exercise period in March, North Korea announced that it had tested new secret weapon systems, including the nuclear unmanned underwater attack vehicle “Haeil” and the long-range strategic cruise missiles “Hwaseal-1” and “Hwaseal-2.” Four days after the joint exercise ended, North Korea launched two short-range ballistic missiles (SRBMs) presumed to be the KN-23, known as the “North Korean version of the Iskander.”

Because of this, there is a possibility of provocations by North Korea around the South Korea-U.S. joint exercise period. North Korea, which has announced the re-launch of its military reconnaissance satellite, will mark the 70th anniversary of its victory on the 27th of next month. Following that, major political events are scheduled, including the regime establishment day on September 9 and the Workers’ Party founding anniversary on October 10.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.