S. Korea, U.S. to launch annual drill on March 2

South Korea and the United States will launch their joint annual war games from next week despite the strong opposition from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), the Combined Forces Command (CFC) said on Tuesday.

The "Key Resolve" command post exercise will be staged from March 2 to March 13, mobilizing some 10,000 South Korean troops and 8,600 U.S. forces, including 6,750 American soldiers from overseas, according to the CFC.

South Korea and the U.S. have said it is an annually-held drill of "defensive" nature to ensure defense readiness of the combined forces, but the DPRK has denounced it as a rehearsal for a northward invasion.

The DPRK proposed to suspend annual war games between Seoul and Washington this year in return for its suspension of nuclear tests, a proposal flatly rejected by the two countries.

"It is important to maintain our high level of proficiency on key tasks while exercising different scenarios," Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti, commander of the CFC and the U.S. Forces Korea, said in a statement.

"Exercising our multi-national force is an important component of readiness and is fundamental to sustaining and strengthening the Alliance."

The Foal Eagle field training exercise will be conducted from March 2 to April 24, involving about 200,000 South Korean troops and 3,700 American soldiers, including 3,500 U.S. forces from overseas. The field maneuver exercise includes a set of land, sea and air maneuvers.