S. Korea to kick off biennial integrated defense drill next week

SEOUL, May 7 (Yonhap) -- The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said Friday it will kick off a biennial rear area training next week together with the government, police and firefighters to maintain an integrated defense posture. The Hwarang training will begin Monday in the southeastern city of Daegu and its surrounding North Gyeongsang Province and run until November in five different regions, according to the military. "The goal of the training is to achieve proficiency in the wartime and peacetime operational plan execution procedures and establish an integrated defense posture," an official said. This year's exercise will include drills to jointly respond to nonconventional security threats, such as COVID-19, in addition to operations to prepare against infiltrations and attacks on important national facilities, according to the JCS. With strict antivirus measures in place, major drills will be conducted as field training exercises, while others will be carried out as command post movement exercises with the participation of essential personnel only, it said. scaaet@yna.co.kr (END)