South Korean and US Army troops will stage a joint four-week exercise in a desert in California next month, officials said Wednesday, as the allies seek to bolster their combined operational capabilities.
Some 150 personnel, including those from the 7th Maneuver Corps' air assault unit and the Capital Mechanized Infantry Division, will join the drills set to take place at the US National Training Center in the Mojave Desert in California from Aug. 2 to 31, according to the South Korean Army.
The exercise will begin with terrain reconnaissance and tactical discussions before carrying out attack and defense operations for 10 days. It will also include training on field combat firing.
The armed service has deployed around 90 to 150 special operations troops for the regular combined drills at the NTC since 2014. It marks the first time for it to send a company-level mechanized infantry unit to the exercise.
The Army said it expects the drills to train troops on combat skills of small combined units and to serve as an opportunity to boost combined operational capabilities.
It added that it plans to gradually increase the number and size of the exercises at the NTC based on the progress made in this year's exercise. (Yonhap)
