US, S Korea agree to suspend joint military drills during Olympics
The United States and South Korea have agreed to delay joint military exercises until after the Winter Olympics next month, the Seoul government has announced.
A statement from the office of South Korean President Moon Jae-in said that US President Donald Trump and Moon made the decision during a phone conversation Thursday.
"The two leaders agreed that the US-South Korea joint military exercises will not be carried out during the Olympics period, and the armed forces of the two countries should do their best to guarantee the safety of the Olympics."
The statement quoted the South Korean leader as telling Trump that delaying the exercises would help ensure the success of the Winter Olympics "in case the North does not make any more provocations."
Colonel Rob Manning, a Pentagon spokesman said that Washington backs the Seoul’s decision.
"The Department of Defense supports the president's decision and what is in the best interest of the ROK-US Alliance," the spokesman said referring to South Korea by its official acronym.
The announcement by Seoul government came ahead of high-level talks set for next week between North and South Korea.
The North-South talks set for next week are meant to focus on "matters of mutual interest", including the North's participation in the Winter Olympics.
The move came after North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un offered to send a team to the Winter Olympics, which will take place from February 9-25 in Pyeongchang, a mountain resort just 80 kilometers south of the heavily fortified North-South border. Pyongyang boycotted the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul.
The New Year has begun on a more positive note as Pyongyang and Seoul had made a number of overtures to one another.
On Wednesday, the two Koreas restored a cross-border hotline that had been shut down since 2016.
In recent months, the two Koreas have seen tensions rise over Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile tests and Seoul’s joint military activities with the United States.
North Korea has been under a raft of crippling UN sanctions since 2006 over its nuclear tests as well as multiple rocket and missile launches. Pyongyang has firmly defended its military program as a deterrent against the hostile policies of the US and its regional allies, including South Korea and Japan.
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