S. Korean Army conducts combined arms drill to counter NK threats

The South Korean Army said Thursday it is conducting a combined arms drill by mobilizing state-of-the-art K-2 Black Panther tanks in a bid to beef up its combat readiness against North Korea's threats.

An infantry division is carrying out the exercise, which kicked off Monday and will run until Friday at the Seungjin training ground, located in Pocheon, north of Seoul, with about 70 tracked vehicles, including 20 K-2 tanks, and aircraft, it said.

It marked the first time that the military conducted a battalion-level air-land drill since the K-2 tanks were deployed with front-line troops, it said.

K-2, the South Korean military's latest main battle tank (MBT), has been produced since 2013 with more than 200 having been deployed so far.

During the drill, K-2 battle tanks, K-21 mechanized infantry fighting vehicles and aircraft broke through mock anti-tank defense lines held by imaginary North Korean troops, the military said.

An artillery unit fired off shells from its K-55 self-propelled howitzers at the imaginary North Korean camp, based on information it got about an enemy's location from feedback from tanks.

In line with the artillery barrage, tanks and armored vehicles charged at the target at high speeds under the cover of aircraft, the Army said. (Yonhap)