Military preparing to conduct combined training with US: defense chief
Defense Minister Suh Wook speaks during a press conference at his office at the Ministry of National Defense in Seoul's Yongsan District, Wednesday. Courtesy of Ministry of National Defense
By Jung Da-min, Joint Press Corps
The military is preparing to conduct regular springtime combined exercises with the U.S., Defense Minister Suh Wook said, Wednesday, adding the allies would decide whether to go ahead with the drills as planned, scale them down or cancel them based on the COVID-19 pandemic situation here.
On President Moon Jae-in's earlier remarks that it would be possible for the South to consult with North Korea through a joint military committee on the issue of the combined military training, Suh said the military is in the same position and could consult any military-related issues with Pyongyang, in accordance with the Sept. 19 Comprehensive Military Agreement signed as part of the Pyongyang Joint Declaration in 2018.
Suh's remarks came amid growing criticism of the Moon government that the issue of the Korea-U.S. combined exercises should not be a subject of negotiations with North Korea, as it is a matter of maintaining the military readiness of the South.
“The military is preparing and checking every step before conducting combined training with the U.S. We will decide whether and how to conduct it based on the COVID-19 pandemic situation, by considering the fact that the vaccination of U.S. troops is underway and monitoring the number of new virus outbreaks among our military members,” Suh said in a press conference at the Ministry of National Defense in Seoul.
Suh said he understands that there has been controversy surrounding the combined drills and Moon's remarks regarding the matter. The defense minister said he would like to emphasize that it is an annual defensive practice to maintain the South Korea-U.S. defense posture.
“What the President meant by the remarks was that there are concerns from the North's side about the South Korea-U.S. combined training and the two Koreas have agreed to have talks over such matters when they reached the Sept. 19 Military Comprehensive Agreement in 2018. Moon was talking about the matter in a general sense,” Suh said.
“The military also believes that if tension is relieved and trust between the Koreas is built, any issue can be discussed through military talks between the Koreas, by holding inter-Korean military joint committee meetings, any other military meetings or general-level ones.”
Suh said that the South would decide on how to conduct the drills and whether to hold them through consultation with the U.S., not based on the North's objections.
Regarding Pyongyang showing off of its latest weapons following the eighth congress of the country's ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), Suh said the militaries of South Korea and the U.S. are both well aware of them and possess surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities, as well as strike and intercept capabilities to deal with missile threats from the North.