Overview

• North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has overseen a series of artillery firing drills aimed at boosting combat readiness, with the drills involving units capable of striking Seoul.
• The drills come in response to the ongoing South Korea-U.S. military training, which North Korea views as a rehearsal for invasion.
• Kim Jong Un has called for heightened war preparations and urged his military to be ready for rapid and merciless strikes in the event of actual war.
• The United States and South Korea have continued their annual Freedom Shield exercise, involving a significant increase in troops and joint field drills compared to last year.
• North Korea's actions, including the artillery drills and heightened war preparations, have raised tensions on the Korean Peninsula amid ongoing South Korea-U.S. military exercises.