South Korea and the US commence the Ulchi Freedom Shield military exercise, a joint defense readiness drill, from August 19-29.

South Korea and the US will initiate the Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) military exercise from August 19-29, involving 19,000 South Korean troops and focusing on joint defense readiness against North Korea's escalating threats. The multi-domain exercises include land, sea, air, cyber, and space assets. Despite North Korea's accusations of invasion rehearsals, South Korea and the US maintain that the drills are purely defensive.