Korea and the United States are expected to hold the nuclear-conventional integrated tabletop exercise (CNI TTX) "Iron Mace" from the 15th to the 19th. It is the first exercise since the Lee Jae-myung administration took office.

According to the military authorities on the 12th, this exercise, involving the joint chiefs of staff and the strategic command of both countries, will be led by U.S. forces and take place at Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi, a U.S. Forces Korea base. Following last August and this April, this is the third exercise.

Last month at a training ground along the Namhan River in Yeoju, Gyeonggi, soldiers from the Army's 7th Engineer Brigade and troops from the U.S. 2nd Infantry Division/Combined U.S.-South Korean Division conduct a floating-bridge crossing exercise. /Courtesy of News1

During the same period, the three countries of Korea, the United States, and Japan will conduct the multi-domain combined military drill "Freedom Edge" in international waters southeast of Jeju, and the Korean and U.S. militaries will also run the CNI TTX in parallel. The CNI TTX is a discussion-based exercise that integrates the nuclear and conventional assets held by the two militaries to respond to and deter North Korea's nuclear threat.

In this exercise, Korea and the United States are said to jointly plan how Korea will support with conventional capabilities when the United States deploys nuclear-armed strategic assets, and also discuss ways to strengthen extended deterrence in response to North Korea's nuclear and missile threats.

However, the two countries are said to have decided not to promote the exercise externally, anticipating a backlash from North Korea. In the previous two tabletop exercises, they disclosed on the final day that the CNI TTX had been conducted.

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