The United States and East Asian allies Japan and South Korea on Saturday concluded their first trilateral 'multi-domain exercise' in a collective show of force in the face of continuing nuclear and missile threats posed by North Korea.The drills called Freedom Edge were held from June 27-29 in the East China Sea, part of which borders the western coastline of the Korean Peninsula, although the allies typically train off the South Korean island of Jeju.
The leaders of the three countries announced at the Camp David summit in August 2023 that they would hold 'annual, named, multi-domain trilateral exercises' to enhance coordination.In a statement on Sunday, the North Korean Foreign Ministry denounced all three countries for their 'reckless and provocative' exercise and warned of 'fatal consequences,' without elaborating.