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S. Korea, US suspend annual military drills

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N. Korea expected to respond reciprocally to ease tension

By Lee Min-hyung

South Korea and the United States announced the suspension of a joint military exercise slated for August, Tuesday.

North Korea is also expected to take action to ease tensions in line with its pledge to give up its nuclear weapons

According to the Ministry of National Defense, Seoul and Washington agreed to suspend the annual Ulchi Freedom Guardian (UFG) exercise, while also reviewing additional measures to ease military tension.

"We have decided to suspend all the scheduled military activities surrounding the UFG exercise in August," the defense ministry said in a statement Tuesday morning. "But nothing has been decided on suspending other joint exercises."

Ministry spokeswoman Choi Hyun-soo also said South Korea and the U.S. will review suspending exercises as long as the North continues its ongoing dialogue with Seoul and Washington.

The suspension of the joint exercise comes after U.S. President Donald Trump hinted at the possibility following a landmark summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Singapore, June 12.

Trump expressed disapproval of Seoul and Washington holding such regular "war games," which he called "provocative" and "very expensive."

"The UFG suspension will help keep the ongoing peace momentum on the peninsula moving forward," Choi said in a media briefing, without elaborating on the details behind the decision.

UFG is one of the largest-scale joint military drills here along with springtime Foal Eagle and Key Resolve exercises. More than 17,000 U.S. troops participated in last year's UFG drill. This is the first time since 1990 the two countries have suspended the exercise.

For this reason, Seoul and Washington expect Pyongyang to take appropriate measures regarding its nuclear and missile disarmament in response.

After the Trump-Kim summit in Singapore, defense chiefs from Seoul and Washington discussed suspending UFG.

"The South Korean military has had detailed negotiations with its U.S. counterpart after the two defense ministers held a telephone conversation on Thursday," the defense spokeswoman said.

Given the North's ongoing peace gestures, chances are the North may dismantle missile launch and engine test facilities in return.

But if the regime shifts its stance and displays an insincere attitude toward denuclearization, the joint drills will resume, according to the defense ministry.

The regular military exercises here have always drawn a fierce backlash from Pyongyang, with it threatening to retaliate. This May, the Max Thunder joint air force drills between Seoul and Washington sparked strong condemnation from Pyongyang.

In an apparent show of anger, the North canceled planned high-level inter-Korean dialogue in May and threatened not to participate in the first-ever Washington-Pyongyang summit.

But with the North regaining its peace momentum after the Trump-Kim summit, the two Koreas resumed their long-suspended military dialogue last week to ease any possible inter-Korean military conflicts.

They agreed to speed up the implementation of the April 27 Panmunjeom Declaration signed by leaders of the two Koreas by easing inter-Korean military tension at major disputed areas.



Lee Min-hyung mhlee@koreatimes.co.kr


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