A U.S.-based artillery unit was deployed to the Korean Peninsula to conduct a live-fire exercise in the western coast of South Korea with the Eighth U.S. Army stationed here, the Eighth U.S. Army said Thursday in a statement.

The 18th Field Artillery Brigade, based in Ft. Bragg, North Carolina, staged an Emergency Deployment Readiness Exercise (EDRE) with the army unit at Daecheon earlier in the day, the online statement said.

The U.S. forces exercised their abilities to deploy troops to the peninsula with little or no notice and rapidly integrate with local units to execute a mission, it said.

The U.S.-based artillery unit carried out a live-firing drill upon landing in South Korea, shooting long-range precision munitions to the Jikdo island off the west coast of South Korea. The island is about 60 km away from Daecheon.

The joint drill, the statement said, demonstrated the unit's capabilities, including the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) and showcased the U.S. capacity to rapidly deploy long-range precision munitions.

"This exercise shows Eighth Army's ability to integrate joint capabilities with stateside units to any location on the Korean Peninsula in support of the ROK-U.S. Alliance," said Lt. Gen. Thomas Vandal, commander of the Eighth Army.

The ROK, an official name of South Korea, is an acronym of the Republic of Korea (ROK).

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