Free Republic

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Following U.S. warnings to North Korea of a “massive military response,” South Korea fired missiles into the sea to simulate an attack on the North’s main nuclear test site on Monday, a day after North Korea detonated its largest-ever nuclear test explosion. South Korea’s Defense Ministry also said Monday that North Korea appeared to be planning a future missile launch, possibly of an ICBM, to show off its claimed ability to target the United States with nuclear weapons, though it was unclear when this might happen. The heated words from the United States and the...

Taiwan has started a computerized military exercise to simulate a scenario of China’s launching of an invasion on the island in 2017. The five-day maneuver that started on Monday is part of Taiwan’s biggest annual military drill with this year’s exercise being codenamed 'Han Kuang 29', AFP quoted defense ministry officials as saying. The Taiwanese defense ministry said that the drill simulates a surprise attack followed by a large-scale invasion by China in 2017. It did not, however, provide any explanation as to why the scenario was being considered for that specific year. “Over the past few years, ties across...