World War 3: US and South Korea hold WAR GAMES as tensions rise on the peninsula
THE US and South Korea have begun their annual joint military exercises after they were delayed
by a month for the Winter Olympics but it looks as though tensions could soon heat up
after a cooling off period, it has been revealed.
The Foal Eagle and Key Resolve exercises are usually held every year around March but they
were postponed this year until after the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics and Paralympics, which started
in February and ended last month.
They were also postponed to help create conditions for resumption of talks between the two Koreas.
South Korean defence minister Song Young-moo said: "The exercise was postponed according
to the spirit of the Olympics.
"We have agreed to uphold the basis until after the Paralympics."
A Pentagon spokesman said in March that the two joint drills would involve about 23,700
US troops and 300,000 South Korean forces.
Military officials in Seoul said the scale of the exercises would be the same as previous
years and would not go beyond.
The Foal Eagle field exercise, which usually involves combined ground, air, naval and special
operations troops, will continue for a month.
The computer-simulated Key Resolve will be held for two weeks starting in mid-April.
North Korea, which has traditionally accused both South Korea and the United States of
practising invading the North during joint military drills, has remained quiet.
According to South Korea's National Security Office head Chung Eui-yong, in March North
Korean despot Kim Jong-un told a visiting South Korean delegation in Pyongyang that
he "understands" the situation regarding the joint drills.
The joint exercises come roughly a month ahead of an April 27 summit between the two Koreas
which is the first in more than a decade.
Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in are widely expected to discuss denuclearisation
of the Korean peninsula and improvement of inter-Korean relations at the summit.
But Japan sent out a chilling warning on March 31 that North Korea is preparing for another
nuclear test.
Activity was seen at an underground tunnel giving clues that the North Korean leader
is preparing for another test.
The country's Foreign Minister Taro Kono said: "[North Korea] is doing everything possible
to prepare for the next nuclear test: it is currently extracting earth from an underground
tunnel where the previous test was carried out.
"If South Korea and the US respond to our efforts in good faith, build a peaceful and
stable atmosphere, and adopt phased and simultaneous steps for peace, the issue of denuclearisation
on the Peninsula can be resolved.
"The issue of denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula can be resolved, if South Korea
and the United States respond to our efforts with goodwill, create an atmosphere of peace
and stability while taking progressive and synchronous measures for the realisation of
peace."
Japan's defence chief welcomed on Friday the planned resumption of US-South Korean
joint military exercises, saying the annual drill would add pressure on North Korea to
abandon its nuclear weapons program.
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