# South Korea’s Lee backs stronger self-defense, says drills are not aimed at North Korea

https://mins.news/en/item/24684

- Reuters, 2026-08-18 02:10 UTC
- Politics
- Original: https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/south-koreas-lee-backs-stronger-self-defence-says-drills-not-aimed-north-korea-2026-08-18/?link_source=ta_bluesky_link&taid=6a83bf01aa1ab60001e2eac5

> South Korean President Lee Jae Myung called on Tuesday for stronger independent defense capabilities. He said annual civil-defense exercises held alongside joint U.S.-South Korea military drills were defensive and not intended to threaten North Korea.

## Stories

- [US–North Korea Relations and North Korea Policy](https://mins.news/en/topic/us-north-korea-relations) — Markdown: https://mins.news/en/topic/us-north-korea-relations.md

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