US sends bombers to conduct drills with South Korea

The US, South Korean and Japanese militaries conducted a joint air exercise today, November 3, with the participation of B-1B bombers.

The South Korean military said the exercise involved US B-1B bombers, South Korean F-15K and KF-16 fighters, and Japanese F-2 fighters, according to AFP.

"The exercise demonstrates the commitment of the South Korea-US alliance to strengthen extended deterrence to respond to growing nuclear and missile threats from North Korea," South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff stressed in a press release.

Two US B-1B bombers (right) fly over South Korea with South Korean F-35A and US F-16 fighter jets during a joint air force exercise in South Korea in March 2023.

In the new drill, South Korean and Japanese fighter jets escorted US strategic bombers to a designated location south of the Korean peninsula, "demonstrating overwhelming capabilities in rapidly and accurately attacking simulated targets," AFP quoted a press release as saying.

The South Korean military added that this was the fourth time this year that B-1B bombers had been deployed to the Korean peninsula and the second time that the three-way air exercise was aimed at countering " military threats" from North Korea.

There was no immediate word on North Korea's response. The drills came three days after Pyongyang launched one of its most advanced solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), which experts say could reach targets in the US mainland, according to AFP.

KCNA news agency hailed it as " the world's most powerful strategic rocket" and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un "expressed great satisfaction" over the successful ICBM launch.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/my-dieu-may-bay-nem-bom-tap-tran-voi-han-nhat-o-nam-ban-dao-trieu-tien-185241103140711575.htm