News / Koreas

South Korea, US fail to decide on joint military drills amid pandemic concerns

Tuesday, 21 July 2020 8:54 AM [ Last Update: Tuesday, 21 July 2020 8:58 AM ]

South Korean soldiers take part in a live-fire exercise near the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas, in Paju, South Korea, on June 23, 2020.(Photo by Reuters)

A South Korean official says the coronavirus pandemic threatens the joint military exercises with the United States, as the two sides struggle to agree on the scale, scope and timing of their annual war games.

South Korean Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo and US Defense Secretary Mark Esper failed to decide on the details of the drills during a telephone conversation on Tuesday, officials said.

“We’ll watch developments to determine the scale, date, and methods of the exercises,” Reuters cited a South Korean official as saying anonymously.

“We have to do what is necessary, but safety is also key to maintaining defense readiness posture,” the official said.

The war games, which usually begin in early August, would likely be delayed this year until September. They are meant to be a show of force against what Seoul and Washington label a North Korean threat.

The US has reported almost 50 cases of coronavirus infection — including 10 on Monday — among its troops, employees, and their families in South Korea in the past three weeks. All were confirmed on arrival or while in two-week mandatory quarantines.

The surge in cases of the disease among US forces has raised concern in South Korea, which hosts some 28,000 US troops.

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The unnamed South Korean official further said that Esper and Jeonge did not discuss any withdrawal of US troops.

Last week, The Wall Street Journal had reported that the Pentagon had in March offered the White House options to reduce the US military presence in South Korea.

President Donald Trump has formerly questioned the value of the joint military exercises with South Korea and promised to end the drills during his first summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

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