In a powerful show of force, South Korea, the United States, and Japan conducted joint air drills on July 11, aiming to strengthen their collective response to North Korea’s escalating nuclear and missile threats, according to Seoul’s defence ministry.
The exercise featured the first deployment of a US B-52H strategic bomber to the Korean Peninsula in 2025. Conducted in international airspace near South Korea’s Jeju Island, the drill also included South Korea’s KF-16 and Japan’s F-2 fighter jets, underscoring a united front against Pyongyang’s provocations, as reported by Yonhap News Agency.
This marks the second joint air drill in less than a month—following a similar operation on June 18—and is the first to take place under the leadership of South Korean President Lee Jae-myung.
“The three countries will maintain close coordination to jointly deter and respond to North Korea’s threats through continued trilateral training,” the South Korean defence ministry stated.
The aerial exercise coincided with a landmark meeting in Seoul of the top military leaders from the US, South Korea, and Japan. The trilateral talks focused on reviewing regional security dynamics and deepening military cooperation amid growing concerns over North Korea and China’s military ambitions.
General Dan Caine, Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, emphasized the urgent need for enhanced trilateral security coordination in light of what he described as an “unprecedented” military buildup by both North Korea and China.
“Our focus in the United States remains on reestablishing deterrence, and achieving that requires strong trilateral cooperation,” Caine stated. “The DPRK and China are clearly advancing their military agendas with growing intensity.”
The gathering marked the first Trilateral Chiefs of Defense meeting hosted in Seoul and Caine’s inaugural visit to South Korea as the top US military officer, succeeding Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr., who last visited in November 2023.
The three allies also agreed to expand their multi-domain “Freedom Edge” exercises and jointly condemned North Korea’s continued weapons development and its deepening military ties with Russia.
The message from the skies and the strategy rooms was clear: the US, South Korea, and Japan are reinforcing their military bonds to counter shared threats in an increasingly volatile Indo-Pacific.
