US, Japan and South Korea conduct first-ever "Freedom Edge" exercise

On June 27, the US, Japan and South Korea conducted the first trilateral exercise called Freedom Edge, in which Freedom is the first word in the name of the bilateral joint exercise Freedom Shield between the US and South Korea, and Edge is the last word in the name of the Keen Edge exercise between the US and Japan.

The three-day exercise, which was conducted in international waters south of the southern resort island of Jeju, was held after the three countries' defense ministers agreed to hold the exercise earlier this month, following an agreement reached by their leaders last year, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.

“Freedom Edge demonstrates the will of South Korea, the United States, and Japan to promote trilateral interoperability and protect freedom for peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific, including the Korean Peninsula,” the JCS stressed.

Freedom Edge mobilizes multiple warships and aircraft from three sides, including the US Navy's aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, the South Korean destroyer ROKS Seoae Ryu Seong-ryong, and the Japanese helicopter destroyer JS Ise.

According to the JCS, this exercise will focus on ballistic missile defense, air defense, anti-submarine warfare, search and rescue, maritime interdiction, and cyber defense training. The JCS also said the three sides will continue to expand Freedom Edge in the future.

At the August 2023 summit at Camp David (USA), US President Joe Biden, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida agreed to hold "annual, individually named, multi-disciplinary" trilateral exercises.

While the three countries have held combined naval and air exercises, Freedom Edge marks the first trilateral exercise to take place in multiple domains.