South Korea, US to start joint military exercises despite North Korea’s rebuke

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SEOUL, Aug. 15 (Reuters) – South Korea and the United States will begin their annual joint military exercises on Monday, the South Korean military said on Sunday, amid warnings from North Korea of ​​a diplomatic and security crisis .

South Korea and the United States hold regular military exercises, mostly in the spring and summer, but North Korea has reacted angrily for decades, calling them repeat war.

The exercises will continue for nine days, consisting primarily of computer-simulated defensive command post training with minimal personnel but no live training in the field, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.

“The alliance made the decision after thoroughly reviewing the COVID-19 situation, the common defense posture and ways to support diplomatic efforts to denuclearize and foster lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula,” the said. JCS in a press release.

A day after the allies launched preliminary training last week, North Korea did not respond to routine calls on the inter-Korean hotlines, which were not reactivated until July 28 after the North broke a year ago in the midst of strained ties. Read more [nL1N2P302M]

Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, accused the South of “treacherous behavior” for continuing the exercises. Another senior official said on Wednesday that Seoul and Washington risked a “serious security crisis” by choosing to escalate tensions, instead of improving their relations. Read more [nL1N2PH2IZ]

The United States keeps around 28,500 troops in South Korea – a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War, which ended in an armistice and not a peace treaty, leaving the peninsula in a technical condition of war.

Joint military exercises have been curtailed in recent years to facilitate talks to persuade Pyongyang to dismantle its nuclear and missile programs in return for US sanctions relief.

Negotiations collapsed in 2019, and South Korean President Moon Jae-in’s administration hoped that reopening hotlines would help resume denuclearization talks. Read more

The JCS said the exercises are in part designed to accelerate the progress of Seoul’s efforts to gain wartime control of combined US troops.

Moon has made it a key political goal and increased defense spending to help mobilize U.S. support, but the COVID-19 pandemic has hampered large-scale training and effectively ended his hopes of completing this transfer to the United States. during his term of office which is due to end in March.

Reporting by Hyonhee Shin; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Kim Coghill

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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