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Asia

Korea, annual US-Seoul exercises kick off but in reduced form

Freedom Shield military exercises between the US and South Korea began on a smaller scale as Seoul seeks to de-escalate tensions with Pyongyang

Carri armati sudcoreani sono schierati in attesa in un campo di addestramento nella città di confine di Paju, in Corea del Sud, il 9 marzo 2026, mentre Corea del Sud e Stati Uniti avviano la loro esercitazione militare congiunta primaverile annuale per rafforzare la postura di difesa combinata.

3' min read

Translated by AI

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english@ilsole24ore.com

Versione italiana

3' min read

Translated by AI

For feedback, please contact
english@ilsole24ore.com

Versione italiana

The United States and South Korea have launched traditional spring military exercises on a smaller scale than in previous years, in a delicate moment for the balance in Northeast Asia. The choice comes as Seoul attempts to contain tensions with Pyongyang and on the eve of an Asian mission by US President Donald Trump that is expected to culminate in a meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

The Freedom Shield manoeuvres, which began on Monday and run until 19 March, involve thousands of military personnel and are designed to strengthen interoperability between the two armed forces and joint response capability. The US command emphasised that the goal remains to 'strengthen combined defensive posture and operational readiness'.

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However, the scope of the field exercises has been significantly reduced. A South Korean Defence Ministry official confirmed that the number of field trainings planned during the exercise period has dropped to 22, more than halved from last year's 51.

According to the South Korean General Staff, some 18,000 Seoul military personnel are taking part in the manoeuvres, while the number of US troops has not been made public.

Tensions with Pyongyang

Joint exercises have been a major point of friction with North Korea for years. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un regularly calls them a 'dress rehearsal for invasion', while Washington and Seoul insist on their purely defensive nature.

The decision to reduce activities in the field is read by many observers as an attempt by South Korean President Lee Jae Myung to create more favourable conditions for a possible rapprochement with Pyongyang. Since taking office in June last year, Lee has tried to revive the inter-Korean dialogue, but without achieving any significant breakthroughs so far.

Kim himself rejected Seoul's initiatives, calling them 'a clumsy and unconvincing manoeuvre', while reiterating his intention to accelerate the country's nuclear development. At a ruling party congress in February, the North Korean leader said that any talks with Washington should start with the recognition of North Korea as a nuclear weapon state.

The Shadow of the Middle East

The exercises are taking place while the US is engaged in a military escalation in the Middle East, fuelling speculation about a possible transfer of assets from the Korean peninsula to that area, including Patriot anti-missile batteries.

South Korean media reported that some US military capabilities may have been redeployed to support operations against Iran. Both Washington and Seoul have avoided commenting on specific movements for operational security reasons, but South Korean officials have assured that any transfers will have "no significant impact" on the joint defence posture.

The command of US forces in Korea reiterated that the priority remains 'maintaining a credible, combat-ready force on the Korean peninsula'.

The exercises come at a time of intense diplomatic activity in the region. In the coming weeks Trump is expected to travel to Asia for a visit that will include a summit with Xi in Beijing. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has signalled that tensions in the Middle East will not affect plans to host the US president.

During his first term, Trump had met Kim Jong Un three times in an attempt to initiate a process of denuclearisation of North Korea. However, the talks, which culminated in the failed 2019 Hanoi summit, did not produce concrete results.

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