Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force has held its annual live-fire exercises at the foot of Mount Fuji in central Japan.

Some 2,500 personnel took part in the drills on Saturday at the GSDF's Higashi-Fuji training camp in Shizuoka Prefecture.

The premise of the exercises was a supposed invasion of a remote Japanese island. Reconnaissance personnel alighted from a helicopter and operated drones to surveil the surroundings.

They were followed by a rapid deployment brigade specializing in amphibious landing operations. The brigade fired from combat vehicles and studied tactics to retake the island.

The live-fire exercises have previously been open to the public, drawing more than 20,000 people every year. But the viewings were canceled for the past three years due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The GSDF has decided to keep the present drills closed, despite a loosening of pandemic restrictions. Officials cite the increasing severity of the security situation and the need for focus.

The officials say by the conclusion of the drills on Saturday night, they will have consumed 57 tons of ammunition worth about 1.07 billion yen, or 7.6 million dollars.