By Lee Min-hyung
Joint military exercises between South Korea and the United States can be postponed further amid growing signs of the resumption of the long-suspended dialogue between Washington and Pyongyang.
Chances were slim for the resumption of U.S.-North Korea talks before the Olympics, with both sides exchanging aggressive rhetoric.
But on Sunday, Kim Yong-chol, who leads North Korea’s high-level delegation, showed the regime’s willingness to hold dialogue with the U.S.
“Pyongyang is willing to have talks with Washington,” Kim said in a meeting with President Moon Jae-in, Sunday. His remarks came in response to Moon’s request to keep the peace momentum on the Korean Peninsula going. Toward that end, Moon underlined the need for the thaw in not just inter-Korean relations but also between Washington and Pyongyang.
The rare sign of peace on the peninsula is raising hopes for the U.S. and North Korea to hold talks on the regime’s denuclearization. The U.S. remains firm in its stance on North Korea, but is slowly showing signs of easing tension against the regime by expressing recently its will to hold talks with the North.
The ongoing trilateral peace momentum, however, may be put on hold once Seoul and Washington resume their annual military drills right after the closing of the PyeongChang Paralympics next month. They did not confirm a specific timeline or other details about them, opening the possibility to a further delay of the joint military exercises beyond April.
Unification ministry spokesman Baik Tae-hyun said: “We expect North Korea and the U.S. to have constructive dialogue.”
The Ministry of National Defense said nothing specific has been discussed about the North’s request regarding the joint military drills between Seoul and Washington.
A Joint Chiefs of Staff spokesman said South Korea will push ahead with the drills as planned, declining to comment further.
As North Korea calls the joint drills one of the biggest reasons for its own provocations, South Korea is not unveiling details about the delayed Seoul-Washington annual military exercises.
President Moon hopes to continue holding peace talks with the North, and for this he has stressed the importance for U.S.-North Korea talks.
“North Korea needs to show its willingness for denuclearization for a possible dialogue with the U.S.,” Moon said Monday in a meeting with Liu Yandong, vice premier of the People’s Republic of China, Monday.