Naval forces of South Korea, the United States and Japan will stage a joint drill next week, the defense ministry said Thursday.

The two-day drill, which begins next Thursday in waters off South Korea's southern island of Jeju, will involve training in search and rescue operations and maritime interdiction operations.

Destroyers and anti-submarine helicopters will be mobilized for what officials call an exercise"of a humanitarian nature," launched in 2008, the ministry said in a statement.

South Korea and the US are set to launch a separate, three- day drill on June 23 in waters off the west coast of the Korean Peninsula.