US, South Korea, Japan hold new naval missile defense drills
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South Korea's navy says the exercises focus on mastering response procedures in a scenario featuring a DPRK ballistic missile launch.
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The US guided-missile destroyer Benfold, Japan's Atago destroyer, and South Korea's 7,600-tonne Aegis destroyer Yulgok Yi I (Japan Maritime Self Defense Force)
South Korea, the United States, and Japan carried out on Monday joint naval missile defense exercises to strengthen security cooperation against the DPRK's alleged missile threats, Seoul's navy said.
On Friday, the three countries agreed at talks in Washington to hold regular missile defense and anti-submarine exercises to boost diplomatic and military cooperation.
On the same day, the DPRK announced that it tested a new Hwasong-18 solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile, the latest in the country's arsenal of deterrence weapons, which has shown rapid development in this strategic area.
BREAKING: First images of North Korea's new Hwasong-18 solid-fuel ICBM released by state media Friday. It was test launched Thursday in the presence of Kim Jong Un and his daughter
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Reuters reported that the trilateral drills in international waters between South Korea and Japan bring together the US guided-missile destroyer Benfold, Japan's Atago destroyer, and South Korea's 7,600-tonne Aegis destroyer Yulgok Yi I.
According to South Korea's navy, the exercises focus on mastering response procedures in a scenario featuring a DPRK ballistic missile launch.
"It is an opportunity to strengthen trilateral security cooperation against North Korea's escalating nuclear and missile threats," Captain Kim Ki-young of the South Korean destroyer said in a statement.
The Japanese Defense Ministry also indicated that the drills promote trilateral cooperation over regional security challenges.
DPRK slams US 'nuclear blackmail'
Hours after the trilateral drills, Ri Pyong Chol, vice president of the DPRK's ruling party's Central Military Commission, issued a statement criticizing the US for requesting a UN Security Council meeting over its ICBM test.
According to Ri, the DPRK's weapons development was a self-defensive measure of defense against the US.
The DPRK official accused the US of raising regional tensions "to the brink of explosion" with military drills simulating a "pre-emptive nuclear strike and an all-out war" against Pyongyang.
The recent deployment of US strategic bombers was "clear evidence that the U.S. nuclear threat and blackmail against us has reached a level that cannot be overlooked," Ri stressed.
"If the U.S. ignores our repeated warnings and continues actions that endanger the security environment of the Korean peninsula, we will take necessary action so that it feels a clearer security crisis and insurmountable threat," he underlined.
The DPRK has warned of "more practical and offensive" action as South Korean and US forces, along with Japan, have staged provocative annual springtime exercises since March -- in what Pyongyang has described as a rehearsal for nuclear war.
South Korea, Japan resume 'two-plus-two' talks
Reuters reported that the air forces of the US and South Korea on Monday are set to begin drills for a 12-day run.
In a related context, South Korea and Japan resumed on Monday the "two-plus-two" talks of senior diplomatic and security officials in Seoul after a five-year halt, as ties thaw after a years-long feud over issues of wartime history.
In a joint statement after the meeting, the South Korean and Japanese defense ministries said the two countries shared views on the DPRK and regional issues while agreeing to improve their understanding of each other's policies and foster security cooperation in a "forward-looking" way.
It is noteworthy that in March, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol visited Japan and met with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, the first such summit in 12 years.
Read more: S. Korea fires warning shots after alleged DPRK vessel crossover
