- Sputnik International
Asia
Find top stories and features from Asia and the Pacific region. Keep updated on major political stories and analyses from Asia and the Pacific. All you want to know about China, Japan, North and South Korea, India and Pakistan, Southeast Asia and Oceania.

South Korea Rules Out Halting Joint Drills With US Despite Pyongyang's Protests

© AP Photo / Ahn Young-joonSouth Korean army Surion helicopters fire flares during a South Korea-U.S. joint military live-fire drills at Seungjin Fire Training Field in Pocheon, South Korea,
South Korean army Surion helicopters fire flares during a South Korea-U.S. joint military live-fire drills at Seungjin Fire Training Field in Pocheon, South Korea, - Sputnik International
Subscribe
TOKYO (Sputnik) - The South Korean Defense Ministry ruled out the possibility of halting or scaling down the annual joint military drills with the United States even despite the resentment on the part of North Korea, the ministry's spokeswoman Choi Hyun-soo said at a briefing on Monday.

"Our stance on the holding of the annual joint military exercises, which are defensive in their nature, has not changed. We intend to preserve the existing scope of the maneuvers," Choi said, answering a reporter's question about a possibility of halting the exercises with Washington, in particular, of Ulchi-Freedom Guardian drills amid Pyongyang's protests.

People pass by a TV screen showing file footages of U.S. President Donald Trump, right, and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during a news program at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, April 9, 2018 - Sputnik International
World
Trump Afraid Meeting N Korea's Kim Will Be 'Political Embarrassment' – Reports
Last week, North Korea decided to cancel ministerial-level negotiations with South and doubted the rationality of holding of the forthcoming summit with the United States in the light of the start of the South Korean-US Max Thunder drills, that kicked off on May 11 and are set to last until May 25.

READ MORE: N Korea Confirms Closure of Nuclear Site After Talks With South Suspended

Addressing the issue, Seoul regretted the refusal of North Korea to hold the talks scheduled for May 16, but stressed that the military exercises would be continued in accordance with the plan, despite Pyongyang's protests. The South Korean Unification Ministry, in its turn, underlined that it would continue efforts to pursue a dialogue with Pyongyang.

The next US-South Korean joint military exercises, the Ulchi-Freedom Guardian, are set to be held in August.

Newsfeed
0
To participate in the discussion
log in or register
loader
Chats
Заголовок открываемого материала