South Korea and the United States have agreed to conduct 22 field training drills as initially planned during their annual joint springtime military exercise next month, nearly halving the number of such on-field drills from last year, officials said Friday.
The number of field training exercises (FTX) planned during this year's Freedom Shield (FS) exercise is less than half of the 51 field drills conducted last year under the conservative government of former President Yoon Suk Yeol.
The allies announced Wednesday they will stage this year's FS exercise from March 9-19. But at that time, they failed to disclose the scope of the Warrior Shield field drills in a rare move, saying they are in consultation over the details.
"South Korea and the U.S. have been closely coordinating over the joint live field training drills," a Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) official said during a regular press briefing.
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