North Korea officially condemned the upcoming US-South Korea joint military exercises, Ulchi Freedom Shield, calling them provocative and rehearsals for an aggressive war. The North’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson said, "It is our consistent principle of ensuring security to respond to a new level of a threat with a new level of a deterrent" and warned it would respond accordingly to the drills scheduled from August 17 to August 27, 2026 [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].

The Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises will involve about 18,000 South Korean troops and 28,500 US troops. The drills will focus on countering drones, GPS disruption, cyberattacks, and modern warfare tactics [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. US and South Korean military officials state the exercises are defensive and aim to prepare for potential North Korean aggression rather than provoke conflict [1, 6, 3, 5].

North Korea sharply criticized the trilateral US-South Korea-Japan military cooperation, accusing it of becoming a nuclear alliance that raises the risk of nuclear war [1, 3, 5]. The North warned it would not tolerate the "grave confrontational situation" and would clearly express its stance through "responsible and decisive exercise of the right to legitimate self-defense," according to the spokesperson [4].

The tensions escalated after North Korea launched a ballistic missile over the Sea of Japan on August 12. The missile, launched from Wonsan, flew about 700 km into waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan and was detected by South Korea and Japan [6, 2, 3, 4]. South Korea’s National Security Office expressed concern and urged Pyongyang to halt missile launches violating UN Security Council resolutions [6].

North Korea reportedly sent between 12,000 and 15,000 troops to fight alongside Russia in Ukraine, gaining battlefield experience. Colonel Ryan Donald of the US-South Korea Combined Forces Command said, "They’ve taken those lessons they learned there and brought them back to North Korea. Our training accounts for that threat" [3, 4].

The Ulchi Freedom Shield drills will begin on August 17, involving comprehensive joint exercises amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula [1, 3, 5].