US and South Korea to stage huge military exercise despite North Korea crisis

US and South Korean militaries will go ahead with massive sea, land and air exercises later this month, despite a spiraling situation in which North Korea has threatened to fire missiles towards a US Pacific territory. The annual joint exercises, named Ulchi-Freedom Guardian, have long been planned for 21-31 August, but now come at a time when both

Washington and Pyongyang are on heightened alert, raising the spectre of a mishap or overreaction. The timing is doubly concerning as it is within a timeframe in which Pyongyang says it will be ready to fire four Hwasong-12 intermediate-range ballistic missiles toward the US-run island of Guam, an unusually specific threat against the US. CONTINUE