Thailand's Fighter Jet Decision: Boeing F-16, SAAB Gripen, or Korean FA-50?

 Thailand is considering acquiring a new fourth-generation fighter aircraft, with options including the Boeing F-16 and SAAB Gripen. Now, the South Korean contractor Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) has thrown its hat into the ring, proposing its FA-50 light fighter aircraft to the Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF).

KAI's proposal comes in response to an informal request for proposals (RFP) from the RTAF, aiming to replace aging Lockheed Martin F-16A/Bs. While the FA-50 offers advanced capabilities at a lower cost and with timely delivery, the RTAF had initially shown interest in fifth-generation F-35 Lightning II aircraft.

The FA-50, an export success for KAI, boasts features such as Tactical Data Link and Precision Guided Munitions. It has been actively deployed by the Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) since 2013 and has garnered significant orders from countries like Poland and Malaysia.

Despite initial interest in the F-35, the RTAF aims to bolster its air power with potent fighter jets. The competition now includes the F-16 Block 70/72 Viper and SAAB Gripen-E, both offering advanced capabilities in their generation.

With the entry of the FA-50 into the contest, the RTAF faces a three-way decision, potentially reshaping its evaluation process and strategic considerations.

KF-21 Fighter Project: Indonesia and South Korea Discuss Future Collaboration Amid Data Theft Concerns

 The CEO of PT Dirgantara Indonesia, Gita Amperiawan, embarked on a two-day visit to South Korea on March 28, amidst ongoing investigations into alleged data theft linked to the joint KF-21 fighter jet project. Both the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) and Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd. (KAI) acknowledged the visit of the Indonesian official.

PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI) plays a crucial role in Indonesia's aerospace sector and has been actively participating in the joint development of the KF-21 fighter jet alongside KAI. The KF-21 project, launched in 2015, aims to deliver an advanced supersonic fighter by 2026.

While the purpose of Amperiawan's visit was not explicitly stated, discussions between Indonesian and South Korean officials likely revolved around the progress and future cooperation regarding the joint project. However, specific details of these discussions were not disclosed.

The visit comes in the aftermath of reports alleging an attempted data theft related to the KF-21 program by an employee of PTDI at KAI's headquarters in South Korea in January this year. This incident prompted a police investigation, raising concerns about its impact on the joint development initiative and broader Indonesia-South Korea aerospace collaboration.

The investigation primarily focuses on whether the stolen data contained sensitive technologies crucial to the KF-21 development. Consequently, Indonesian individuals are currently barred from leaving South Korea pending the investigation.

In February 2024, South Korean lawmakers advocated for stricter laws to prevent defense secrets leakage, highlighting the need for legislation to safeguard military expertise effectively. Delays in Indonesia's financial contributions to the KF-21 project have also raised concerns, with the nation owing a substantial amount to South Korea.

Despite these challenges, both countries continue to reaffirm their commitment to the KF-21 project, with recent announcements highlighting progress and prospects. South Korea's approval to produce 20 KF-21 Boramae fighters this year demonstrates its determination to advance the project, with plans to deploy 120 units by 2032.

The KF-21, featuring cost-effective yet advanced capabilities, is positioned to replace South Korea's aging fighter fleet and potentially cater to markets in Asia and the Middle East. While not classified as a stealth aircraft, its incorporation of stealth-like features and collaboration with Lockheed Martin contribute to its competitiveness in modern aerial warfare.

Strain on U.S. Munition Stockpiles: Challenges, Priorities, and the Need for Strategic Planning With China in mind

A Defense News article discusses the strain on U.S. munition stockpiles due to increased demand from Ukraine and Israel. In early 2023, the U.S. transferred artillery shells to Ukraine, but the ongoing conflict has depleted stockpiles, impacting munitions planning. Ukraine's monthly shell expenditure exceeds U.S. monthly production by approximately 3.6 times. Israel's request for 155mm shells further stresses stockpiles. The Pentagon's poor munitions planning raises concerns about its ability to address Indo-Pacific contingencies. Israel has also sought precision-guided munitions, raising questions about U.S. capacity and planning. Wargames indicate potential shortages in high-intensity conflicts with China. The article highlights deficiencies in the Navy's Tomahawk missile inventory and warns of potential challenges in responding to conflicts in multiple regions simultaneously. It emphasizes the need for strategic prioritization, reworking acquisition plans, and promoting multiyear procurement authorities for munitions. The article underscores the importance of addressing long-term munitions challenges to safeguard national interests.

Here is the link to the original article:

https://www.defensenews.com/opinion/2023/12/19/the-us-needs-more-munitions-to-deter-china/

Cartwright: China, S. Korea Need To Pressure North Korea---------Defense News

The United States should take a back seat to China and South Korea when it comes to applying pressure on North Korea, according to an influential, retired U.S. general.
“We could probably do a substantial amount of solving the problems of North Korea if we would let South Korea and China work the problem,” said retired Marine Corps Gen. James Cartwright, who retired last year as the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Cartwright’s comments came during a June 26 presentation at an event sponsored by Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.
“Once you start to introduce commerce, risk equations change substantially,” he said, noting both China and South Korea have built roads and rail lines up to the North Korean border.
“But as long as we’re there, it looks like a wartime footing. We’ve just got to think our way through how to do this,” he said.
The U.S. has about 28,000 troops based on the Korean Peninsula.
Cartwright, who since his retirement has been outspoken on defense issues such as nuclear deterrence and cybersecurity, said the United States should partner with China to make sure nations in the region “are taken care of, that they have access to goods, that they can move their goods.”
“We’re better off solving these problems if we do so with China,” he said.
Cartwright said there needs to be an authoritative venue that could address nations’ claims of natural resources under the South China Sea.

Washington and Seoul ready for War Games

SEOUL — U.S. and South Korean troops are preparing for their annual joint war games in coming weeks, an official said Jan. 25, despite the sensitive power transition underway in North Korea.

The two countries “are preparing for the Key Resolve exercise,” a U.S. military spokesman told AFP, adding the schedule was not finalized.

South Korea’s defense ministry declined to comment. Media reports said the exercises — which the North blasts as warmongering — would go ahead as scheduled.

Pyongyang last year threatened a military response to the fortnight-long Key Resolve computerized drill, which is normally followed by a joint air, ground and naval training exercise known as Foal Eagle lasting several weeks.

The exercises last year involved 12,300 U.S. troops and some 200,000 South Korean service members, including reservists. They passed off without incident.

Seoul and Washington, which bases 28,500 troops in the South, say the drills are defensive and routine but the North habitually terms them a rehearsal for invasion.

It has taken a hostile tone with the South since its leader Kim Jong-Il died Dec. 17 and was replaced by his youngest son Jong-Un.

The new leader has been appointed armed forces chief and has visited several units in an apparent attempt to burnish his military credentials.

This year’s Key Resolve will start Feb. 27, the Korea JoongAng Daily newspaper reported.

“It’s true that we have weighed whether we should go ahead with the exercise or not after North Korean leader Kim’s death at the end of last year,” an unidentified senior Seoul official was quoted as saying.

“But the North’s wintertime drills are continuing and the military threats still persist, so we’ve decided to go ahead with our military exercise as scheduled.”

North Korea’s air force has conducted more training than normal this winter despite Kim’s death, Yonhap news agency said on Tuesday.

On Jan. 25 Yonhap also quoted sources as saying Key Resolve would start Feb. 27 and continue for two weeks.

Pyongyang’s new regime has vowed retaliation against Seoul for alleged disrespect during the mourning period for its late leader.

Cross-border tensions have been high since the South accused the North of torpedoing a warship with the loss of 46 lives in March 2010.

The North denied involvement but eight months later shelled a border island and killed four South Koreans.

N. Korean Air Arm steps up training missions

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea’s air force has conducted more training than normal this winter despite the death of leader Kim Jong Il, a report said Jan. 24.

The North’s military drills for winter began in late November and are showing no “abnormal” activities following Kim’s death on Dec. 17, the South’s Yonhap news agency said.

“We, however, witness a slight increase in the number of air force flights taking part in training,” an unnamed government official was quoted as saying.

The South will go ahead with its planned joint exercise with U.S. troops in March as Pyongyang has not eased its tough stance towards Seoul, Yonhap said.

Kim Jong Un, the late leader’s youngest son, has visited army units as head of the armed forces in an attempt to burnish his military credentials.

Kim, believed to be in his late 20s, was proclaimed supreme leader and appointed commander of the 1.2-million-strong military following the death of his father.

The new regime has vowed retaliation against Seoul for alleged disrespect during the mourning period for its late leader.

Cross-border tensions have been high since the South accused the North of torpedoing a warship with the loss of 46 lives in March 2010.

The North denied involvement but eight months later shelled an island near the tense Yellow Sea border and killed four South Koreans.

Kim chaired a Lunar New Year banquet on Jan. 23 for senior officials, the Korean Central News Agency said Tuesday.

At the meeting, leading ruling party official Choe Thae Bok urged North Koreans to glorify 2012 as “a year of shining victory when an era of prosperity is unfolding,” the agency said.

The regime has pledged to turn the impoverished, nuclear-armed country into a “powerful and prosperous nation” this year, which marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of founding president Kim Il Sung, father of Kim Jong Il.

Iraq considers Czech made Fighter jets

PRAGUE — The Czech Republic is looking to sell dozens of Czech-made L-159 subsonic jet fighters to Iraq, Defence Minister Alexandr Vondra said after talks Jan. 23 with his Iraqi counterpart in Prague.

"The talks are very intensive ... and concern dozens of planes," Vondra told reporters after meeting Iraq's acting Defence Minister Saadun al-Dulaimi. Al-Dulaimi said Iraq was "really very interested in the planes," which it wants as soon as possible.

Vondra said the Czech side was offering new fighters made by Czech manufacturer Aero Vodochody, as well as 36 unused L-159s, which the defense ministry has been trying to sell for years.

"Iraq is logically interested in new planes ... but it also wants the fighters as fast as possible, so we can use at least part of the unused planes owned by the defense ministry," Vondra said, refusing to give details about the price of the planes, which are facing competition from Britain's Hawk and South Korea's TA-50.

Aero Vodochody, controlled by Czech-Slovak private equity group Penta, is the largest Czech aircraft producer and a subcontractor for Sikorsky, Saab and EADS and other manufacturers.

U.S. warns against North Korea's provocations

WASHINGTON — The United States urged China on Jan. 19 to press North Korea’s new leader to exercise restraint, saying that South Korea would face “enormous pressure” to respond to any provocations.
Kurt Campbell, the top U.S. diplomat on Asia, admitted that little was known about North Korea’s young leader Kim Jong-Un and warned that “provocative steps have the risk of triggering deeply unforeseen consequences.”
“We need to handle the situation with the greatest care and we expect China in their deliberations with North Korea to ensure that that message is deeply understood,” Campbell said at the Stimson Center think-tank, echoing remarks made on a tour of East Asia earlier this month.
North Korea in 2010 shelled an island in the South and was accused of torpedoing a warship, incidents that killed 50 people and which some analysts saw as a way for young heir Kim to prove his mettle.
Campbell, an assistant secretary of state, said that South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak, a close U.S. ally, showed “remarkable restraint” after the deaths.
“But their leaders have made clear that they’ve reached a point that if they faced further provocations, they would have enormous pressure to respond.
And we understand that,” Campbell said.
China is the closest ally of isolated North Korea, although Campbell said that even officials in Beijing were in the dark about Kim Jong-Il’s Dec. 17 death until North Korean state television announced the news two days later.
Kim’s death threw into flux U.S. plans for fresh diplomacy with North Korea, including a possible resumption of American food assistance to the impoverished state and more formal talks on ending Pyongyang’s nuclear program.
“We have made clear through both public channels and privately that we are prepared to start a new chapter to deal clearly with outstanding issues of nuclear matters and the like,” Campbell said.
Campbell met Jan. 17 with senior officials from Japan and South Korea to coordinate action. In a statement, the countries urged North Korea to recommit to past agreements to end its nuclear program.

U.S., Allies Plot Next Steps on Post-Kim N. Korea

WASHINGTON — Senior officials from the United States and close allies South Korea and Japan met Jan. 17 to coordinate their next steps on North Korea amid deep concern following the death of leader Kim Jong-Il.

The United States was considering a new engagement drive with North Korea when Kim suddenly died on Dec. 17, leaving control of the isolated and nuclear-armed state to his young and inexperienced son Kim Jong-Un.

Kurt Campbell, the top U.S. diplomat on Asia, went into a day of closed-door talks with his Japanese counterpart Shinsuke Sugiyama and Lim Sung-Nam, South Korea’s envoy to stalled nuclear talks on North Korea, a U.S. official said.

State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Jan. 13 that the talks “will focus on ensuring that we’re well coordinated on our policy towards North Korea” and also look at “broader regional issues writ large.”

The three countries comprise half of the six nations involved in years of diplomacy on North Korea’s denuclearization. The talks also involved China, Russia and Pyongyang itself.

North Korea stormed out of talks in April 2009 to protest what it described as U.S. hostility. It has since sought to resume dialogue, but the United States has insisted that Pyongyang clearly recommit to agreements on denuclearization.

In hopes of keeping open channels of communication, the United States held two rounds of talks with North Korea last year in New York and Geneva.

A third round was reportedly scheduled in Beijing before the announcement of Kim’s death put the process on hold. The North said last week that Washington had offered it food aid and a suspension of sanctions if it halts its uranium enrichment program.

Nuland last week denied that the United States was linking food to politics and said Washington was still considering North Korea’s longstanding requests for food assistance.

“Our decision will be based on our assessment of need and our ability to monitor what we might be able to provide,” she said.

Christian-oriented U.S. aid groups have said for months that North Korea desperately needs food assistance to save lives. But some South Korean policymakers and U.S. lawmakers accuse the North of exaggerating its needs.

India Casts Wider Net for Short-Range Missiles

NEW DELHI - The Indian Army has entered the global market to buy short-range surface-to-air missile (SRSAM) systems for $1.5 billion, a move that could further undercut a four-year effort to develop a system with MBDA of France.

The Army convinced the Indian Defence Ministry there is an urgent requirement for SRSAM, said Army sources, and did not want to wait for the Maitri project conceived four years ago. India and France have not been able to agree on details of the Maitri project, including funding arrangements, the source added.

The Army last month sent global tenders to defense companies in Europe, the United States and Russia including Raytheon of the U.S., Israel's Rafael, MBDA and Thales of France, Diehl Defence of Germany, KBP Tula and Rosoboronexport of Russia, Ukraineexport of Ukraine and LIG NEX1 of South Korea.

The requirements of the SRSAM are similar to those of the proposed Indo-French Maitri project, the Army source said.

The current tender is for two regiments (36 systems, 1,000 missiles) estimated to cost about $800 million each. The total Indian Army requirement is likely to be about eight regiments in the next five to seven years.

The Maitri project was proposed to be jointly developed by India's Defence Research and Development Laboratory and MBDA.

The selected vendor will have to transfer technology of the systems, as well.

The supply will be made in two batches and completed within five years of the signing of the tender, including the launchers, sensors, vehicles for transportation and the missiles. The system must have a service life of at least 20 years and the missiles of not less than eight years.

The SRSAM system should be able to engage multiple targets, including those flying up to 500 meters per second, and have a maximum range of not less than 15 kilometers.

In 2009, India bought two regiments of Spyder quick-reaction surface-to-air missile systems from Rafael. Another Indo-Israeli joint project is the $2.5 billion long-range surface-to-air missile project signed in 2009 and expected to be inducted in 2013, Indian Defence Ministry sources said.

Meanwhile, the Indian Army has begun inducting the homemade medium-range Akash, which has a range of up to 30 kilometers. In 2011, the Indian Army ordered the induction of two Akash regiments at a cost of about $3 billion.

The Army also has been negotiating the purchase of David Sling and Iron Dome missile interceptor systems.

Asian Navies Shift to Bigger Vessels, Downplay Littoral Ops

TAIPEI - As Western navies build fewer aircraft carriers, destroyers and submarines, Asian navies are moving in the opposite direction, ignoring the littorals with construction and procurement of larger warships and submarines.

The U.S. and Europe have stepped back from larger platforms designed for the Cold War and invested in smaller platforms such as the U.S. Navy's Freedom-class Littoral Combat Ship (LCS). But this is not the case in East Asia and the Pacific, where there have been increases in spending on destroyers and submarines in Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, said Bob Nugent, vice president of naval advisory services at AMI International, based in Seattle.

One of the most notable cases involves Taiwan's procurement of four Kidd-class guided missile destroyers and plans to procure eight submarines. Japan and South Korea have also invested heavily in guided missile destroyers equipped with advanced phased array radars.

Even in budget-challenged Southeast Asian countries, the trend has been a shift from smaller to larger platforms, such as frigates and large corvettes. Examples include Singapore's Formidable-class frigates, Indonesia's SIGMA-class corvettes, Malaysia's recent decision on the SGPV/LCS frigates, and Vietnam's plan to buy SIGMAs and the pending delivery of Russian-built Kilo-class submarines.

The main reason regional navies are ignoring littoral capabilities has to do with geography. In the region, "the home team enjoys an enormous advantage of range and proximity and the attacker would have to be prepared to conduct pre-emptive strikes against the coast state's bases before conducting operations in the littoral," said Sam Bateman a regional naval specialist at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, in Singapore.

The U.S. Navy should "think twice" about deploying classic sea control/power projection capabilities, such as carrier battle groups, within range of subs and land-based strike aircraft, Bateman said. The U.S. Navy's new LCS will be "hugely vulnerable without close-air support and that cannot be guaranteed."

The U.S. and Singapore have recently agreed to allow the U.S. Navy to station the LCS in Singapore.

Air support is the "elephant in the room" with littoral warfare, Bateman said. Littoral warfare is dependent on fire support directed against targets on land, either from aircraft close-air support or naval gunfire. Despite all the advances with missiles, "the big caliber naval gun remains an attractive and effective way of putting down fire in coastal areas."

Another problem in the Asia-Pacific has been increased tension over exclusive economic zone (EEZ) claims, particularly in the South China Sea. Many countries, including China, claim restrictions over naval operations in their EEZs.

Some within the region have invested in stealthy vessels to avoid detection in the littoral environment. Singapore's Formidable-class frigates are based on the stealthy French-built La Fayette-class frigates and Singapore's ST Engineering is conducting research to develop the 27-meter Stealth Interceptor and 57-meter Stealth Patrol Vessel.

Taiwan wants to build a stealthy 900-ton catamaran corvette and is manufacturing a stealthy 180-ton fast-attack missile patrol boat, armed with Hsiung Feng-2 anti-ship missiles. The stealthy SIGMA-class corvettes procured by Indonesia and now being considered by Vietnam are other examples.

For Asian countries dealing with the littoral issue, the challenge is finding the right investment balance among intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) and defensive and offensive technologies, Nugent said.

"Unmanned systems are critical to ISR and defense in the littoral now and will become more so for offensive littoral warfare as unmanned maritime systems are more widely armed for all domains in the future," he said. Investments in better sensors and C4ISR are the other areas where the "gaps that create vulnerabilities in ship's self-defense against missiles and torpedoes in the littoral are getting a lot of attention."

Another area of growing interest is the use of unmanned surface vehicles (USV) and unmanned underwater vehicles (UUV). ST Engineering is developing the 9-meter Venus USV ostensibly for harbor patrol, but the vessel has potential for littoral warfare.

USVs and UUVs will be "particularly useful for littoral warfare as they can be launched outside the EEZ or convenient surveillance range of the coastal state, which is unlikely to have the capabilities of detecting them," Bateman said. "They can be used for surveillance/intelligence collection and as an offensive weapon - to lay mines or fire torpedoes," he said.

There is also potential for anti-submarine warfare, but that capability is as yet "unrealized."

North Korea: U.S. Offered Food for Nuke Shutdown

SEOUL, South Korea - North Korea said Jan. 11 that the United States had offered food aid and a suspension of sanctions if it halted its uranium enrichment program.

The comments by a foreign ministry spokesman to Pyongyang's official news agency were the first by the North on the issue.

Before the sudden death of the North's leader Kim Jong-Il on Dec. 17, there were several media reports that such an agreement was imminent.

At talks in July last year, Washington "proposed to take confidence-building steps such as suspension of sanctions, as well as food aid" in return for a "temporary suspension" of uranium enrichment, the North's spokesman said.

Experts say the uranium program disclosed in November 2010 could give the communist state a second way to make nuclear weapons. The disclosure spurred efforts to revive stalled six-party nuclear disarmament negotiations.

The U.S. and North Korea last year held two rounds of bilateral talks aimed at restarting the negotiations last held in December 2008.

A third round was reportedly scheduled in Beijing before the announcement of Kim's death put the process on hold.

The spokesman's statement suggested that a deal was still on the cards if the U.S. raised the amount of food it is willing to offer. "We will watch if the U.S. truly wants to build confidence," it said.

Washington says any decision to offer humanitarian food aid would not be linked to other issues, but the spokesman accused the United States of politicizing the issue.

Robert King, U.S. special envoy for North Korean human rights, met senior North Korean foreign ministry official Ri Gun in Beijing in December to discuss a possible resumption of U.S. food aid.

South Korean media reports at the time said the North had agreed to suspend its uranium program while the U.S. would provide up to 240,000 tons of food.

The U.S. pledged 500,000 tons of rice in 2008. Shipments stopped the following year amid questions over transparency of the distribution, and Pyongyang told the Americans to leave.

The North's spokesman said Jan. 11 the U.S. had failed to provide 330,000 tons of the amount promised three years ago.

In recent talks it "has drastically changed the amount and items of provision contrary to the originally promised food aid", the spokesman said, adding this raised doubts about Washington's willingness to build confidence.

The U.S. is offering high-energy biscuits and similar nutritional supplements in its latest package, rather than rice which could be diverted to the military or the elite.

UN agencies that visited in February 2011 said six million North Koreans - a quarter of the population - need urgent aid in a nation where hundreds of thousands died in a famine in the 1990s.

N. Korea Military Pledges Support for New Leader

SEOUL, South Korea - North Korea's powerful military has held a mass rally to pledge loyalty to the country's new chief Kim Jong Un, vowing to become "rifles and bombs" to protect him, official media said Jan. 10.

NEW NORTH KOREAN leader Kim Jong Un, center front, poses for photos with North Korean soldiers on Jan. 1. The North's military generals have pledged to support the untested leader. (KCNA via AFP)

The North also announced a rare amnesty for prisoners as the untested, young leader tries to build support.

Service members promised to "become rifles and bombs to serve as Kim Jong Un first-line lifeguards and Kim Jong Un first-line death-defying corps", the official KCNA news agency said.

The regime moved quickly to proclaim Kim, aged in his late 20s, as its new chief after the sudden death of his father and supreme leader Kim Jong Il on Dec. 17.

Kim Jong Il had appointed the son, who is ranked a general but has no known active military experience, as supreme commander of the 1.2 million-strong military.

On Jan. 8, state media showed Kim Jong Un driving a tank and giving orders to artillery, navy and air force units in an apparent attempt to bolster his credentials with the world's fourth-largest armed forces.

KCNA said armed forces chief Ri Yong Ho read the pledge of loyalty to Kim at the Jan. 9 rally in Pyongyang of the three branches of the military, which ended with a march past.

The message pledged to "wipe out the enemies to the last one if they intrude into the inviolable sky, land and seas of the country even 0.001 mm", it said.

The rally paid tribute to the "unswerving Songun will" of the new leader, a reference to an army-first policy which prioritizes their welfare over civilians in a country hit by severe food shortages.

The North separately announced an amnesty for prisoners to mark the upcoming birth anniversaries of its late leaders.

KCNA said the amnesty - the first since 2005, according to South Korea's unification ministry - would apply to "convicts" but did not give numbers or elaborate on who would benefit.

Rights groups say more than 200,000 men, women and children are held in prisons and labor camps, mostly for political and not criminal reasons.

The 70th anniversary of the birth of Kim Jong Il is on Feb. 16. The 100th anniversary of the birth of Kim's father and founding president Kim Il Sung falls on April 15.

The news agency said the decision embodies "the "noble, benevolent and all-embracing politics" of the late Kims.

The regime has vowed not to change course under its new leader and has kept up a stream of hostile commentary on South Korea.

Main newspaper Rodong Sinmun took aim Jan. 10 at a decision by the South and its U.S. ally to sign a joint plan on responding to any North Korean attacks.

An editorial described the joint plan and scheduled exercises related to it as "a conspiracy aimed at eventually triggering a war to invade the (North) with the help of a foreign power."

"The traitor Lee Myung Bak is at the forefront of fanning the madness for war," it said of the South's president.