'You never know': South Korea rehearses for attack from the North
A man who fought in the Korean War says it is "important to train" as they rehearse on the subway for a strike from the North.
Tuesday 22 August 2017 09:03, UK
North Korea has threatened what it calls "merciless retaliation and punishment" against the US for American involvement in military and security drills in South Korea.
The first official response from the North to the annual exercises came in a military statement from Pyongyang.
North Korea has previously issued similar war-like rhetoric whenever US and South Korean troops conduct major joint exercises.
But tensions have been ratcheted up in recent weeks, with Donald Trump promising "fire and fury" if North Korean leader Kim Jong Un utters "one more threat".
We watched as special forces and fire and rescue teams rehearsed for a possible chemical or terror incident on the subway in Seoul.
These are annual drills which have taken on new meaning this year in the face of the war of words between Kim Jong Un and Donald Trump.
With North and South Korea still technically at war, the South is permanently braced for any kind of attack - but North Korea accuses the South and its ally America of preparing for an invasion.
It is day two of 11 days of drills and military exercises which the South Korean government says are designed to train people how to keep safe.
An 83-year-old man, who fought in the Korean War and has lived through half a century of tensions with the North, told us: "It's important to train, you never know what is going to happen."
Subway passenger Jungwon Shin said: "This reminds people we're still in a conflict with the North."
Amidst it all, commuters on the subway and shop workers simply look on nonplussed as they make their journey, but hoping this never happens to them.
Bakery worker Seungye Lee said: "I can't imagine something like this if it happened for real - what it would be like. I would be scared."
North Korea has promised what it calls retaliation and punishment against America for US involvement in the training programme.
The rhetoric and the rehearsals have all been seen and heard before - but no one is one hundred per cent confident it will never become a reality.