US, S. Korea to hold joint military drills

Related: China, Russia launch large-scale war games

(Press TV) -- The United States and South Korea are set to hold a joint military exercise next month amid mounting tension in the Korean peninsula.

A US military statement said on Friday that the exercise will involve "10,000 US soldiers and an unspecified number" of South Korean troops.

The 10-day long maneuver is scheduled to take place on August 17-27.

US military sauces noted that the drill also involves "computer-simulated war games designed to improve the allies' ability" to defend the South from any possible attack in the volatile region.

Kim Yong-kyu, a US Forces Korea (USFK) spokesman told reporters that North Korea was "notified this morning of the August exercises."

Pyongyang regularly denounces such exercises as preparations for a US invasion of North Korea.

Tension increased on the peninsula after the North conducted its second nuclear test in May.

Pyongyang insists that its nuclear program is a deterrent against US forces in the region and accuses US President Barack Obama of plotting with regional allies to topple the communist regime.