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Defense Minister Yoon Kwang-ung on Wednesday denied reports that Seoul agreed to make training for a U.S.-led initiative aimed at intercepting alleged North Korean shipments of weapons of mass destruction part of regular joint Korea-U.S. military exercises this year. Yoon said there was ¡°no such plan¡± to include training for the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI), which would involve aerial or marine operations to intercept ships suspected of carrying such weapons or weapons parts for export.
Yoon confirmed that the joint training exercises scheduled for this year would go ahead as planned notwithstanding Pyongyang¡¯s sensitivity to the war games amid yet another deadlock in six-party talks to end its nuclear program and attempts to bring top brass of the two Koreas together for talks. The joint exercise next up is the so-called Foal Eagle Exercise combined with a drill dubbed Reception, Staging, Onward Movement and Integration.
In response to news that the U.K., Australia and Japan are pulling out of Iraq by the end of May, Yoon confirmed there are no plans to reduce Korean troops in the war-torn country beyond the 1,000 already agreed. The mandate of the remaining 2,200 members of the Zaytun Unit there has just been renewed for another year. Turning to Korea¡¯s bid to recover operational control of its troops in wartime from the U.S., the minister said the two allies will produce a roadmap on the handover in regular consultations known as the Security Policy Initiative. ¡°But more study is needed to determine how long it will take to make the preparations and actually regain¡± control, he said.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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