Military Exercises and New Threats on the Korean Peninsula

This year's Korea-US joint military exercises, centered around the 'Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS)', have sparked further discussion on the future of military deterrence against North Korea. The sudden proposal by US President Donald Trump to reduce training without sufficient prior consultation, linking it to the Iran war, has shown how open the Korea-US alliance is to political decisions as the main bearer of military deterrence. On the other hand, from a technological perspective, deterrence against North Korea has gained a new dimension supported by new technology, beyond traditional military power and nuclear weapons. What is important in this year's training is not drones and cyberattacks, but the new war experiences gained by North Korean soldiers participating in the Russia-Ukraine war, which could return to the Korean Peninsula. Korean and US military authorities have reflected North Korea's gained war experiences, such as drones, GPS jamming systems, and cyberattacks, in the training scenarios. These developments indicate that the military balance on the Korean Peninsula may change and new threats may emerge.