WASHINGTON/SEOUL (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that North Korea does not have any economic future with nuclear weapons as the Pentagon confirmed the United States and South Korea had agreed to end joint large scale spring military exercises.

“North Korea has an incredible, brilliant economic future if they make a deal, but they don’t have any economic future if they have nuclear weapons,” Trump said at a Conservative Political Action Conference.

He added that the relationship with North Korea seemed to be “very, very strong.”

According to a statement, acting Pentagon Chief Patrick Shanahan spoke with his South Korea counterpart on Saturday and they agreed to adapt their training programs.

The two “made clear that the Alliance decision to adapt our training program reflected our desire to reduce tension and support our diplomatic efforts to achieve complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in a final, fully verified manner,” the Pentagon said.

South Korea’s military issued a similar statement also confirming plans to end the spring joint military exercises.

Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs Lee Do-hoon is planning to visit the United States in the coming week to meet U.S. officials to discuss the second U.S.-North Korea summit as well as the future agenda, according to a South Korean official.

The Pentagon said the U.S. and South Korea had agreed to “newly designed Command Post exercises and revised field training programs.” U.S. officials have long said the scope of the spring exercises, known as Foal Eagle and Key Resolve, would be reduced.

Reuters and others reported on Friday that such an announcement would take place. To encourage talks, the United States and South Korea have suspended a number of military exercises since the first summit last year between Kim and Trump.

South Korea’s joint Chiefs of Staff and South Korea-United States Combined Forces Command said on Sunday that the two countries will conduct a military exercise from March 4 to 12.

The exercise,”Dong Maeng”, which means “Alliance” in English, has been modified from the previously held spring exercises Key Resolve and Foal Eagle and will focus on strategic, operational, and tactical aspects of general military operations on the Korean Peninsula.

“Exercise Dong Maeng provides us the opportunity to train and rehearse with our Republic of Korea, United States, and United Nations Sending State Partners,” said the ROK Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Park Han-Ki and the CFC Commander, Gen. Robert B. “Abe” Abrams in a statement.

“It is important for professional armies to train and maintain to a standard of readiness. These exercises are crucial in sustaining and strengthening the alliance,” the statement added.

In Vietnam this week, the second meeting between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ended without a deal on sanctions relief North Korea would get in exchange for steps to give up its nuclear program.

Trump on Saturday addressed criticism from the parents of Otto Warmbier, an American student who died after 17 months in a North Korean prison. They had complained when Trump said at a Hanoi news conference that he believed Kim had nothing to do with Warmbier’s death.

Trump said he was trying to maintain “a delicate balance” to coax the North Koreans into giving up their nuclear program.

The United States and North Korea have said they intend to continue talks, but have not specified when.

Some observers credited Trump for refusing to be drawn into a bad deal. Others criticized him for praising Kim’s leadership and accepting his assertion that he had been unaware of Warmbier’s treatment.

Analysts believe North Korea has 20 to 60 nuclear warheads which could threaten the U.S. mainland if fitted to its intercontinental ballistic missiles. The United Nations and the United States ratcheted up sanctions when North Korea conducted nuclear and ballistic missile tests in 2017.

Washington has demanded complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization before sanctions can be lifted, a position Pyongyang has denounced as “gangster like.”</s>North Korea has no economic future if it has nuclear weapons: Trump

North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump meet for the second North Korea-U.S. summit in Hanoi. Photo by KCNA via Reuters

The Pentagon confirmed the United States and South Korea had agreed to end joint large scale spring military exercises.

"North Korea has an incredible, brilliant economic future if they make a deal, but they don’t have any economic future if they have nuclear weapons," Trump said at a Conservative Political Action Conference.

He added that the relationship with North Korea seemed to be "very, very strong."

According to a statement, acting Pentagon Chief Patrick Shanahan spoke with his South Korea counterpart on Saturday and they agreed to adapt their training programs.

The two "made clear that the Alliance decision to adapt our training program reflected our desire to reduce tension and support our diplomatic efforts to achieve complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in a final, fully verified manner," the Pentagon said.

South Korea’s military issued a similar statement also confirming plans to end the spring joint military exercises. Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs Lee Do-hoon is planning on visiting the United States in the coming week to meet with U.S. officials to discuss the second U.S.-North Korea summit as well as the future agenda, according to a South Korean official.

The Pentagon said the U.S. and South Korea had agreed to "newly designed Command Post exercises and revised field training programs." U.S. officials have long said the scope of the spring exercises, known as Foal Eagle and Key Resolve, would be reduced.

Reuters and others reported on Friday that such an announcement would take place. To encourage talks, the U.S. and South Korea have suspended a number of military exercises since the first summit last year between Kim and Trump.

The second meeting between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un from February 27-28 in Hanoi, Vietnam ended without a deal on sanctions relief North Korea would get in exchange for steps to give up its nuclear program.

Trump on Saturday addressed criticism from the parents of Otto Warmbier, an American student who died after 17 months in a North Korean prison. They had complained when Trump said at a Hanoi news conference that he believed Kim had nothing to do with Warmbier’s death.

Trump said he was trying to maintain "a delicate balance" to coax the North Koreans into giving up their nuclear program.

The United States and North Korea have said they intend to continue talks, but have not specified when.

Some observers credited Trump for refusing to be drawn into a bad deal. Others criticized him for praising Kim’s leadership and accepting his assertion that he had been unaware of Warmbier’s treatment.

Analysts believe North Korea has 20 to 60 nuclear warheads which could threaten the U.S. mainland if fitted to its intercontinental ballistic missiles. The United Nations and the United States ratcheted up sanctions when North Korea conducted nuclear and ballistic missile tests in 2017.

Washington has demanded complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization before sanctions can be lifted, a position Pyongyang has denounced as "gangster like."</s>The US military and South Korea are planning to "discontinue" annual large-scale military exercises as President Donald Trump pursues efforts to improve ties with North Korea, a US official told AFP Friday.

The comment from the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, came shortly after the conclusion of Trump's second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Hanoi, which ended without a formal agreement but with both sides suggesting they will keep talking.

NBC News first reported that the Foal Eagle drills -- which usually take place in the spring -- would be scrapped, citing two unnamed US defense officials.

Foal Eagle is the biggest of the regular joint exercises held by the allies, and has always infuriated Pyongyang, which condemned it as preparations for invasion. In the past, it has involved 200,000 South Korean forces and some 30,000 US soldiers.

It overlaps with the Key Resolve exercise.

Since Trump's first summit with Kim last year in Singapore, the US and Seoul have scaled back or scrapped several joint military drills, and US bombers are no longer flying over South Korea.

Trump has repeatedly complained that the exercises are too costly.

NBC reported that the annual exercises would be replaced with "smaller, mission-specific training."

The Republican president however has ruled out withdrawing any of the 28,500 US forces based in South Korea to defend it from its nuclear-armed neighbor, which invaded in 1950.

Any such drawdown would face strong pushback from the US Congress and Japan, whose conservative government is deeply wary of North Korea's intentions.</s>(CNN) The United States and South Korea announced Saturday that annual large-scale exercises, which were a cornerstone and recent common feature of the defense relationship between the two militaries, will end and will be re-configured into smaller exercises that do not carry the same high profile as earlier versions known to have been a major irritant to North Korea

The large scale named military exercises, commonly known as Foal Eagle and Key Resolve, were scheduled for this spring. The joint exercises will be scaled back and done on a small unit level or even include virtual training similar to the 2018 scaled back exercises.

Defense officials have said they believe they can achieve the necessary training needs in this manner. The announcement follows a phone call Saturday between acting US Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan and South Korean Minister of National Defense Jeong Kyeong-doo.

"Following close coordination, both sides decided to conclude the Key Resolve and Foal Eagle series of exercises," a readout from the Defense Department of the phone call said. "The Minister and Secretary reaffirmed their commitment to ensuring the continued combined defense of U.S.-ROK (Republic of Korea) combined forces to meet any security challenge, and agreed to maintain firm military readiness through newly designed Command Post exercises and revised field training programs."

The US and South Korea will hold the military exercises from March 4 through March 12, the South Korean Defense Ministry said in a statement Sunday.

Read More</s>WASHINGTON/SEOUL (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that North Korea does not have any economic future with nuclear weapons as the Pentagon confirmed the United States and South Korea had agreed to end joint large scale spring military exercises.

“North Korea has an incredible, brilliant economic future if they make a deal, but they don’t have any economic future if they have nuclear weapons,” Trump said at a Conservative Political Action Conference.

He added that the relationship with North Korea seemed to be “very, very strong.”

According to a statement, acting Pentagon Chief Patrick Shanahan spoke with his South Korea counterpart on Saturday and they agreed to adapt their training programs.

The two “made clear that the Alliance decision to adapt our training program reflected our desire to reduce tension and support our diplomatic efforts to achieve complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in a final, fully verified manner,” the Pentagon said.

South Korea’s military issued a similar statement also confirming plans to end the spring joint military exercises. Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs Lee Do-hoon is planning on visiting the United States in the coming week to meet with U.S. officials to discuss the second U.S.-North Korea summit as well as the future agenda, according to a South Korean official.

The Pentagon said the U.S. and South Korea had agreed to “newly designed Command Post exercises and revised field training programs.” U.S. officials have long said the scope of the spring exercises, known as Foal Eagle and Key Resolve, would be reduced.

Reuters and others reported on Friday that such an announcement would take place.[nL1N20O1CO] To encourage talks, the United States and South Korea have suspended a number of military exercises since the first summit last year between Kim and Trump.

In Vietnam this week, the second meeting between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ended without a deal on sanctions relief North Korea would get in exchange for steps to give up its nuclear program. [nL3N20O1HN]

Trump on Saturday addressed criticism from the parents of Otto Warmbier, an American student who died after 17 months in a North Korean prison. They had complained when Trump said at a Hanoi news conference that he believed Kim had nothing to do with Warmbier’s death.

Trump said he was trying to maintain “a delicate balance” to coax the North Koreans into giving up their nuclear program.

The United States and North Korea have said they intend to continue talks, but have not specified when.

Some observers credited Trump for refusing to be drawn into a bad deal. Others criticized him for praising Kim’s leadership and accepting his assertion that he had been unaware of Warmbier’s treatment.

Analysts believe North Korea has 20 to 60 nuclear warheads which could threaten the U.S. mainland if fitted to its intercontinental ballistic missiles. The United Nations and the United States ratcheted up sanctions when North Korea conducted nuclear and ballistic missile tests in 2017.

Washington has demanded complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization before sanctions can be lifted, a position Pyongyang has denounced as “gangster like.”</s>The US military and South Korea are planning to "discontinue" annual large-scale military exercises as President Donald Trump pursues efforts to improve ties with North Korea, a US official told AFP Friday.

The comment from the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, came shortly after the conclusion of Trump's second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Hanoi, which ended without a formal agreement but with both sides suggesting they will keep talking.

NBC News first reported that the Foal Eagle drills -- which usually take place in the spring -- would be scrapped, citing two unnamed US defense officials.

Foal Eagle is the biggest of the regular joint exercises held by the allies, and has always infuriated Pyongyang, which condemned it as preparations for invasion. In the past, it has involved 200,000 South Korean forces and some 30,000 US soldiers.

It overlaps with the Key Resolve exercise.

Since Trump's first summit with Kim last year in Singapore, the US and Seoul have scaled back or scrapped several joint military drills, and US bombers are no longer flying over South Korea.

Trump has repeatedly complained that the exercises are too costly.

NBC reported that the annual exercises would be replaced with "smaller, mission-specific training."

The Republican president however has ruled out withdrawing any of the 28,500 US forces based in South Korea to defend it from its nuclear-armed neighbor, which invaded in 1950.

Any such drawdown would face strong pushback from the US Congress and Japan, whose conservative government is deeply wary of North Korea's intentions.</s>SEOUL, Korea, Republic Of -- South Korea and the U.S. are ending their massive springtime military drills as part of efforts to support diplomacy aimed at resolving the North Korean nuclear crisis.

The decision announced by both countries Sunday came three days after a high-stakes summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam without any agreement.

The Pentagon says the U.S. and South Korean defence chiefs decided to conclude the Key Resolve and Foal Eagle series of exercise.

It says the allies agreed to maintain firm military readiness through newly designed command post exercises and revised field training programs.

North Korea has called the allies' drills an invasion rehearsal and responded with its own costly military exercises.</s>WASHINGTON, March 2 — The US military and South Korea are planning to “discontinue” annual large-scale military exercises as President Donald Trump pursues efforts to improve ties with North Korea, a US official told AFP yesterday

The comment from the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, came shortly after the conclusion of Trump’s second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Hanoi, which ended without a formal agreement but with both sides suggesting they will keep talking.

NBC News first reported that the Foal Eagle drills — which usually take place in the spring — would be scrapped, citing two unnamed US defence officials.

Foal Eagle is the biggest of the regular joint exercises held by the allies, and has always infuriated Pyongyang, which condemned it as preparations for invasion. In the past, it has involved 200,000 South Korean forces and some 30,000 US soldiers.

It overlaps with the Key Resolve exercise.

Since Trump’s first summit with Kim last year in Singapore, the US and Seoul have scaled back or scrapped several joint military drills, and US bombers are no longer flying over South Korea.

Trump has repeatedly complained that the exercises are too costly.

NBC reported that the annual exercises would be replaced with “smaller, mission-specific training.”

The Republican president however has ruled out withdrawing any of the 28,500 US forces based in South Korea to defend it from its nuclear-armed neighbour, which invaded in 1950.

Any such drawdown would face strong pushback from the US Congress and Japan, whose conservative government is deeply wary of North Korea’s intentions. — AFP</s>US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that North Korea does not have any economic future with nuclear weapons as the Pentagon confirmed the United States and South Korea had agreed to end joint large scale spring military exercises.

“North Korea has an incredible, brilliant economic future if they make a deal, but they don’t have any economic future if they have nuclear weapons,” Trump said at a Conservative Political Action Conference.

He added that the relationship with North Korea seemed to be “very, very strong.”

According to a statement, acting Pentagon Chief Patrick Shanahan spoke with his South Korea counterpart on Saturday and they agreed to adapt their training programs.

The two “made clear that the Alliance decision to adapt our training program reflected our desire to reduce tension and support our diplomatic efforts to achieve complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in a final, fully verified manner,” the Pentagon said.

South Korea’s military issued a similar statement also confirming plans to end the spring joint military exercises. Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs Lee Do-hoon is planning on visiting the United States in the coming week to meet with U.S. officials to discuss the second U.S.-North Korea summit as well as the future agenda, according to a South Korean official.

The Pentagon said the U.S. and South Korea had agreed to “newly designed Command Post exercises and revised field training programs.” U.S. officials have long said the scope of the spring exercises, known as Foal Eagle and Key Resolve, would be reduced.

Reuters and others reported on Friday that such an announcement would take place. To encourage talks, the United States and South Korea have suspended a number of military exercises since the first summit last year between Kim and Trump.

In Vietnam this week, the second meeting between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ended without a deal on sanctions relief North Korea would get in exchange for steps to give up its nuclear program.

Trump on Saturday addressed criticism from the parents of Otto Warmbier, an American student who died after 17 months in a North Korean prison.

They had complained when Trump said at a Hanoi news conference that he believed Kim had nothing to do with Warmbier’s death.

Trump said he was trying to maintain “a delicate balance” to coax the North Koreans into giving up their nuclear program.

The United States and North Korea have said they intend to continue talks, but have not specified when.

Some observers credited Trump for refusing to be drawn into a bad deal. Others criticized him for praising Kim’s leadership and accepting his assertion that he had been unaware of Warmbier’s treatment.

Analysts believe North Korea has 20 to 60 nuclear warheads which could threaten the U.S. mainland if fitted to its intercontinental ballistic missiles. The United Nations and the United States ratcheted up sanctions when North Korea conducted nuclear and ballistic missile tests in 2017.

Washington has demanded complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization before sanctions can be lifted, a position Pyongyang has denounced as “gangster like.”</s>The United States and South Korea announced Saturday that annual large-scale exercises, which were a cornerstone and recent common feature of the defense relationship between the two militaries, will end and will be re-configured into smaller exercises that do not carry the same high profile as earlier versions known to have been a major irritant to North Korea

The large scale named military exercises, commonly known as Foal Eagle and Key Resolve, were scheduled for this spring. The joint exercises will be scaled back and done on a small unit level or even include virtual training similar to the 2018 scaled back exercises.

Defense officials have said they believe they can achieve the necessary training needs in this manner. The announcement follows a phone call Saturday between acting US Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan and South Korean Minister of National Defense Jeong Kyeong-doo.

“Following close coordination, both sides decided to conclude the Key Resolve and Foal Eagle series of exercises,” a readout from the Defense Department of the phone call said. “The Minister and Secretary reaffirmed their commitment to ensuring the continued combined defense of U.S.-ROK (Republic of Korea) combined forces to meet any security challenge, and agreed to maintain firm military readiness through newly designed Command Post exercises and revised field training programs.”

The announcement follows this week’s summit in Hanoi between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un that ended in a failure to reach an agreement between both sides.

“The Minister and Secretary made clear that the Alliance decision to adapt our training program reflected our desire to reduce tension and support our diplomatic efforts to achieve complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in a final, fully verified manner,” said the readout.

Trump has also questioned the usefulness of the exercises citing the disproportionate share of the cost of the exercises borne by the United States over South Korea.

The US had had already suspended several larger military exercises as part of an effort to ease tensions with North Korea following the June Singapore summit between Trump and Kim. Former Defense Secretary James Mattis told reporters last November that the 2019 version of the Foal Eagle exercise was being “reorganized a bit” to keep from “being harmful to diplomacy.”
The United States and South Korea announce that their annual large-scale exercises, commonly known as Foal Eagle and Key Resolve, will end and will be re-configured into smaller exercises. The joint exercises will be done on a small unit level and may include virtual training similar to the 2018 exercises.