FILE - U.S. Army mobile equipment sits in a field in Yeoncheon, South Korea, near the border with North Korea, Wednesday, June 17, 2020.
The U.S. keeps about 28,000 troops in South Korea to help deter potential aggression from North Korea, a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War.
On Monday, the South Korea and U.S militaries kicked off annual military drills that would last for nine days.
The big U.S. military presence in South Korea is a symbol of the countriesโ alliance but also a source of long-running anti-American sentiments.
___Associated Press writer Hyung-jin Kim in Seoul, South Korea, contributed to this report.