South Korean and Canadian army troops launched their first joint high-tech military drills in South Korea earlier this week, officials said on Friday. The 11-day exercise runs through April 30 at the Korea Combat Training Center in Inje County. It aims to bolster bilateral military ties.
Troops from South Korea's 7th Infantry Division are training alongside 44 soldiers from Canada's Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry at the Korea Combat Training Center (KCTC). The facility, using advanced technologies for realistic ground drills, is located in the mountainous Inje County, Gangwon Province, about 125 kilometers northeast of Seoul.
The joint training coincides with Canadian troops' visit to South Korea to commemorate the 75th anniversary of a key battle in Gapyeong County in April 1951 during the Korean War. Around 2,000 troops from the 27th British Commonwealth Brigade, including Canadians, fought Chinese forces for three days.
An official ceremony is scheduled later on Friday, attended by army chiefs from Canada, Britain, Australia, New Zealand, and South Korea, as well as deputy commanders of the Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command and the U.N. Command.
Earlier this month, a South Korean naval submarine departed for Canada for joint drills in June, as a Korean consortium competes with Germany's Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems for a contract to supply 12 submarines. President Lee Jae Myung and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney agreed last year to deepen strategic partnership in defense, security, and military intelligence sharing.
