U.S. Forces Korea Commander, General Paul LaCamera responded to the possibility of a North Korean provocation during the on-going annual Freedom Shield combined military drills, saying that any positive actions from the North will be met with a positive response, while negative actions will result in negative responses.

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal on Monday, the top  commander also noted a change in his view of North Korea's nuclear threats, saying that the focus of deterrence against the North has shifted from preventing the development of its nuclear capabilities to preventing its use of nuclear weapons.

He further emphasized that the purpose of the annual combined military drills is aimed at countering a variety of potential threats from North Korea

General LaCamera added that he urged soldiers to learn the lessons from the wars in Ukraine and in the Middle East, stressing that "they cannot have a failure of imagination."