[Yang Nak-gyu's Defence Club] End of ROK-US Joint Exercises... North Korea's Possibility of 'Additional Provocations'

North Reacts to Joint Exercises and Strategic Bombers
Ballistic Missile Launched Early Today
Additional Provocations Expected Around September 9 Political Event

The joint exercise between South Korea and the United States, "Ulchi Freedom Shield" (UFS), is set to conclude on the 31st. North Korea is expected to continue provocations for the time being as it strengthens internal unity ahead of the so-called 9.9 Day (the 75th anniversary of the regime's establishment) on the 9th of next month, with the possibility of U.S. strategic weapons, to which it reacts most sensitively, being deployed at a near-permanent level.

According to the Joint Chiefs of Staff on the 31st, North Korea launched two short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea from the Pyongyang Sunan area between 11:40 p.m. and 11:50 p.m. the previous day. Each of the two ballistic missiles flew approximately 360 km before landing in the East Sea. Considering the flight distance of the ballistic missiles, it appears they were aimed at Gyeryongdae, where the headquarters of the Army, Navy, and Air Force are located. This is seen as a response to the South Korea-U.S. joint exercise "Ulchi Freedom Shield" (UFS), which began on the 21st.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

North Korea also announced that it conducted tactical nuclear strike drills in response to the deployment of the U.S. strategic bomber B-1B on the Korean Peninsula. The Korean Central News Agency claimed that "On the night of the 30th, the Korean People's Army conducted tactical nuclear strike drills simulating the complete destruction of important command bases and operational airfields of the South Korean military gangsters." It further reported that "Comrade Kim Jong-un visited the training command post of the General Staff of the Korean People's Army on the 29th and reviewed the progress of the all-army command training."

The previous day, the U.S. strategic asset B-1B strategic bomber flew over the West Sea as part of UFS. The joint air training involved South Korea's FA-50 fighter jets and the U.S. Air Force's F-16 fighter jets. Originally developed for nuclear delivery, the B-1B currently does not carry nuclear weapons but can be armed with up to 57 tons of munitions, boasting a superior payload compared to other strategic bombers like the B-2 (22 tons) or B-52 (31 tons). The B-1B, nicknamed the "Death Swan," has always elicited sensitive reactions from North Korea whenever it is deployed on the Korean Peninsula. For this reason, the B-1B was also deployed on the peninsula in March and February in response to North Korea's intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) provocations.

Meanwhile, the joint exercise that ended on this day saw a significant increase in outdoor maneuver training. The South Korean and U.S. navies, along with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, conducted missile defense drills on the 29th in international waters south of Jeju, separately from UFS, to respond to North Korea's nuclear and missile threats. The exercise scenarios expanded beyond responding to North Korea's nuclear and missile threats to include domains such as space, cyber, electronic warfare (EW), and cognitive warfare. This was intended to prepare for the changing nature of warfare, which is evolving into hybrid warfare combining various military and non-military means, not just conventional weapons.

Professor Park Won-gon of Ewha Womans University’s Department of North Korean Studies analyzed, "It is most concerning that provocations were carried out before the South Korea-U.S. joint exercise ended," attributing it to "confidence stemming from nuclear weapons possession," and emphasized the possibility of additional provocations ahead of the 9.9 Day.

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