S.Korean, US troops hold joint military exercises near Korean border

Amid growing tension in Korean Peninsula, South Korea and the US held joint military exercises near the inter-Korean border, local media reported on Saturday. South Korean advanced army unit armed with cutting-edge weapons and a Stryker Brigade Combat Team from the US 2nd Infantry Division are took part in the two-week-long exercises in the border city of Paju, Yonhap News Agency reported. Some 800 troops from both countries who were deployed there in November last year have been taking part in the exercises which kicked off on Jan. 2, involving various weapons systems including the South Korean Army's K808 wheel-type armored vehicles, called 'Baekho,' the Stryker combat vehicles as well as reconnaissance drones and anti-tank missile Hyungung, according to the agency. 'Through this training, (we) were able to make the Army TIGER Demonstration Brigade's operational method more concrete and verify its inter-operability with combined forces,' the agency quoted Lt. Col. Lee Jae-yong, battalion commander of the TIGER unit, as saying. The South Korean military launched the TIGER brigade last year as part of its strategy to prepare for any future warfare while using and expanding the use of cutting-edge weapons systems, such as artificial intelligence-powered drones, high-tech combat gear for soldiers and highly mobile armored fighting vehicles, said the report. On Wednesday, a Seoul official said that South Korea and the US plan to hold tabletop joint military exercises next month under the scenario of the use of a nuclear weapon by North Korea. The two allies will hold the longest-ever 11-day exercises without break for the first time. Later, President Yoon Suk Yeol also said that his country may deploy tactical nuclear weapons or possess its own nuclear capabilities. Tensions on the Korean Peninsula have risen again with North Korea launching dozens of missiles last year in a series of weapons tests, including intercontinental ballistic missiles.