Photo : YONHAP News
South Korea and Japan will hold a joint maritime search‑and‑rescue exercise (SAREX) next month, marking the first such drill between the two countries in nearly nine years.
Defense Minister Ahn Gyu‑back announced the plan Saturday during talks with Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi on the sidelines of the 23rd Asia Security Summit, known as the Shangri‑La Dialogue, in Singapore.
The two sides finalized the schedule after agreeing in principle to resume the exercise during defense talks in Japan in January.
South Korea’s Defense Ministry and Navy said the drill is set for June 7 in waters south of Jeju Island, though the date could shift depending on weather conditions.
The joint SAREX will be the first between the South Korean Navy and the Japan Maritime Self‑Defense Force since December 2017.
The exercises were suspended in 2018 amid tensions over Japan’s use of the Rising Sun flag at an international fleet review hosted by South Korea. Tokyo declined to send a vessel after Seoul requested that participating ships refrain from flying the flag.