S. Korea starts North-focused military exercise

South Korea on Thursday kicked off an annual, large-scale military exercise aimed at countering threats from North Korea at a time of heightened cross-border tensions.

The week-long military manoeuvres will involve 240,000 army, navy, air force and marine corps personnel, along with police officers, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). About 500 US soldiers will also take part in the exercise, which Pyongyang had condemned in the past as tantamount to "a war of aggression." (APF)