Defense and foreign affairs officials from South Korea and the United States will hold an annual defense exercise aimed at countering threats from North Korea's nuclear program and other weapons of mass destruction, a Pentagon official said Tuesday.
  

About 40 officials will conduct the annual Extended Deterrence Policy Committee tabletop exercise on Feb. 11-13, at the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses, Seoul, said Lt. Col. Jeff Pool, a spokesman for the Defense Department.
  

The goal is to explore deterrence options against the North's WMD and missile threats, he said.
  

"This year's exercise will serve as an opportunity for the ROK and U.S. to discuss the Tailored Deterrence Strategy and both sides' respective understanding of political and military considerations in responding to North Korean WMD and ballistic missile threats," the official said.
  

This year's session is the fourth iteration of the annual exercise that has been conducted since 2011. It will be the first exercise since the two countries integrated the EDPC and Counter Missile Capability Committee during last year's Security Consultative Meeting, the official said.
  

South Korea's delegation will be headed by Yoo Jeh Seung, deputy defense minister for policy affairs. His U.S. counterparts will be Elaine Bunn, deputy assistant secretary of defense for nuclear and missile defense policy, and David Helvey, deputy assistant secretary of defense for East Asia policy. (Yonhap)