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Tuesday 11 September 2012 - 12:35

US, South Korea practice occupying North Korea in joint drill: Report

Story Code : 194634
US soldiers take positon during a joint military drill with South Korea near the inter-Korean border
US soldiers take positon during a joint military drill with South Korea near the inter-Korean border
The joint exercise “for the first time let the South Korean military lead overall operations to potentially stabilize the North, with the back-up by the US,” the report, published in Korean Dong-A Ilbo paper on Tuesday, said.

The report quoted a South Korean official, without revealing his identity, as saying that the troops involved in the large-scale drill, called Wind of Freedom, also practiced providing North Koreans with humanitarian assistance as well as re-establishing administrative services in North after occupation.

The war games, held on August 20-31, were aimed at reinforcing the role of South Korean forces in the event that an emergency situation happens in the neighboring arch-enemy, the report said.

Some 30,000 US troops and 56,000 South Korean soldiers took part in the exercise. It is part of the annual Ulchi Freedom Guardian aimed at displaying defense capabilities of the duo.

North Korea has denounced the joint drill, considering it as a prelude to war.

Seoul and Washington are expected to stage another military exercise next year during an annual Key Resolve joint drill, the paper also said.

Seoul and Pyongyang have remained technically at war since their 1950-53 conflict ended in an armistice, without a subsequent peace treaty.

The US and South Korea have conducted numerous massive joint sea and air drills in waters east of the Korean Peninsula.

The allies conducted joint military exercises in March, 2012 dubbed "Key Resolve and Foal Eagle" at Camp Carroll located in southeast of Seoul.
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