South Korea and Japan deepen trilateral security ties with US amid North Korea missile test
A new joint military exercise involving US, South Korean, and Japanese forces took place as Pyongyang conducted its first intercontinental ballistic missile test of 2026, prompting a trilateral summit and an upgrade of the alliance's contingency plans.
World — March 16, 2026
South Korea, Japan, and the United States conducted a major joint military exercise in the Sea of Japan in March 2026, announced in direct response to North Korea's first intercontinental ballistic missile test of the year — a Hwasong-19 ICBM that flew approximately 1,100 kilometres before splashing down in waters east of Japan, demonstrating a range potentially capable of reaching the continental United States.
The trilateral exercise, named Freedom Edge 2026, involved three US carrier strike groups, South Korean and Japanese destroyers, and F-35 combat aircraft from all three nations — the largest combined demonstration of allied military power in the region since 2017.
South Korean President Lee Jae-myung and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi held a joint summit in Seoul following the exercise, announcing an upgraded intelligence-sharing agreement and the establishment of a permanent trilateral coordination cell that will share real-time tracking data on North Korean missile launches.
North Korea characterised the ICBM test as a 'routine security measure' and accused the United States of using the Iran conflict as a pretext to deploy additional forces to Asia. Kim Jong Un was reported to have overseen the launch personally.
US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo said the missile test demonstrated that 'the North Korean threat is real, growing, and demands a sustained alliance response.' He confirmed that the US had reinforced its Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, battery in South Korea and was positioning additional sea-based missile defence assets in the region.
China expressed concern about the trilateral military exercise, with Beijing's foreign ministry calling the deployment of three US carrier groups 'destabilising and provocative.' Analysts noted that the exercises served a dual purpose: responding to North Korea while also signalling US capability and resolve to China in the context of Taiwan.
Taiwan welcomed the exercise, with President Lai Ching-te saying the trilateral cooperation demonstrated 'that America's allies in the Indo-Pacific stand together.'
