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South Korean and U.S. forces will begin major joint military exercises next week, incorporating lessons from North Korean troops' deployment in the Russia-Ukraine war, as the allies prepare for changing battlefield threats including drones, GPS disruption and cyberattacks.
The annual Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise will begin Aug. 17 and run for 11 days. The drills are designed to prepare South Korean and U.S. forces to defend against nuclear-armed North Korea.
North Korea has repeatedly criticized the exercises, describing them as rehearsals for an invasion.
Col. Ryan Donald, spokesperson for the U.S.-South Korea Combined Forces Command, said this year's drills would take into account the changing "character of warfare."
"DPRK soldiers have deployed and fought in Ukraine," Donald told reporters, referring to North Korea by the acronym for its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
"They've taken those lessons they learned there and brought them back to North Korea," he said. "That changes the DPRK capability, and our training accounts for that threat."
The exercise will involve 18,000 South Korean troops along with personnel from the 28,500-strong U.S. military contingent stationed in South Korea.
Donald said the drills would place greater emphasis on drone warfare, GPS disruption and the role of cyberattacks.
North Korea has strengthened its relationship with Russia since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
According to analysts, Pyongyang has supplied troops and munitions to support Russia's war in exchange for financial assistance, food, energy and military technology.
North Korean soldiers are also gaining experience in modern warfare through their deployment.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday that a decision had been made to deploy between 30,000 and 50,000 North Koreans to Russian territory.
"They are studying this war," Zelenskyy said in a social media message.
He said the experience could become significant in the event of a crisis or escalation in the Pacific that threatens other Asian countries.
"If we are talking about crises and escalation in another region—in the Pacific—which could pose a threat to other Asian countries, then North Korea will certainly gain experience in modern warfare under Russia," Zelenskyy said.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, who took office in June 2025, has reversed the approach of his more hawkish predecessor and offered talks with North Korea without preconditions.
North Korea's leadership has not responded to Lee's repeated offers.
North and South Korea technically remain at war because the 1950-53 Korean War, which began with a North Korean attack, ended with an armistice rather than a peace treaty.
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