The South Korean military announced Monday that it is holding nationwide field training exercises with police and fire departments through October this year to better respond to “heightened” North Korean threats.

The annual Hwarang Exercises are designed to prepare South Korean servicemembers in all regions, including the rear bases, to respond to various scenarios such as conflicts with the North, according to a Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) press release on Monday.

“In order to establish a firm all-out security posture in the face of heightening threats from North Korea, the drill this year will be normalized [in its scale