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US, South Korea Announce Massive Annual War Games

© AP Photo / Ahn Young-joonSouth Korean and U.S. Marines participate in the U.S.-South Korea joint landing exercises called Ssangyong, part of the Foal Eagle military exercises, in Pohang, South Korea, Monday, March 31, 2014
South Korean and U.S. Marines participate in the U.S.-South Korea joint landing exercises called Ssangyong, part of the Foal Eagle military exercises, in Pohang, South Korea, Monday, March 31, 2014 - Sputnik International
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Washington and Seoul have announced that they will start their annual joint winter drills in South Korea on March 2.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (R) laughs as he watches a drill by the Korean People's Army (KPA) for hitting enemy naval target at undisclosed location in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang January 31, 2015 - Sputnik International
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Washington and Seoul have announced that they plan to kick off their annual joint winter war games, codenamed Key Resolve and Foal Eagle, in South Korea on March 2, sources said.

Key Resolve is due to last over a week and will involve a computer-simulated exercise, while the eight-week Foal Eagle drill will include air, ground and maritime deployments.

Hundreds of thousands of American and South Korean troops will take part in the Foal Eagle exercises, which will wrap up on April 24, according to a South Korean Defense Ministry spokesman.

The drills' goal is to ensure the combat readiness of the US and South Korea in the event of a North Korean attack.

Pyongyang has repeatedly resorted to missile tests and bellicose rhetoric in voicing its dissatisfaction with the US-South Korea exercises, which the North says are a rehearsal for the invasion of North Korea.

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea, which is currently conducting its own winter military exercise, had no immediate response to the announcement of the upcoming drills between Washington and Seoul.

North Korea has been notified of the drills’ schedule and the "non-provocative nature of this training," according to General Curtis Scaparrotti, commander of the allies' Combined Forces Command.

He said that "exercising our multi-national force is an important component of readiness and is fundamental to sustaining and strengthening the alliance."

About 30,000 US troops are currently stationed in South Korea and the US may reportedly take operational command of the allies' combined forces in case of an armed conflict with the North.

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