The Republic of Korea (ROK), the United States and Japan held joint air drills involving the U.S. strategic bomber on Sunday, the ROK's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.

The trilateral drills took place over waters east of the ROK's southern island of Jeju, the JCS said in a statement, adding that this is the fourth time this year that the U.S. strategic bomber has flown to the Korean Peninsula.

F-15K and KF-16 fighter jets from the ROK's air force, at least one B-1B bomber and F-16 fighter jets from the U.S. air force, and F-2 fighter jets from the Japanese Air Self-Defense Force were mobilized for the combined air exercises, said the JCS.

During the drills, the U.S. bomber, escorted by fighter jets from the three countries, struck a simulated target, said the statement, noting that the drills marked the second air exercise between the three countries this year.

The exercise was in response to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on October 31, said the JCS.