President Moon Jae-in said in an interview that the drills could be pushed back if Pyongyang also shows willingness to pause its nuclear and missile tests.
SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea is pushing the U. S. to postpone joint military exercises until after the Winter Olympics as an olive branch to North Korea, a move the administration is considering, the South’s president told NBC News on Tuesday.
President Moon Jae-in said in an exclusive interview that drills could be pushed back if Pyongyang also shows willingness to pause its nuclear and missile tests before the Games in February.
“If North Korea stops its provocations leading up to the Pyeongchang Olympics, it will greatly help in holding a safe Olympics,” he said. “Also, it will help in creating conducive atmosphere towards inter-Korean as well as U. S.-North Korean dialogue.”
The 2018 Winter Olympics will take place in Pyeongchang, 110 miles east of Seoul, between Feb. 9 and Feb. 15, followed by the Paralympics from March 8 to March 18.
“It is possible for South Korea and the U. S. to review the possibility of postponing the drill,” Moon said. “I have made such suggestion to the U. S. and the U. S is currently reviewing.”
“It all this depends on how North Korea behaves,” he added.
The U. S. and South Korea hold frequent military exercises to test their readiness should a conflict break out with North Korea. The biggest exercises are held each spring — known as Key Resolve and Foal Eagle — involving about 17,000 U. S. troops and more than 300,000 South Koreans.
The North has offered to freeze its nuclear and missile programs in exchange for the U. S. and South Korea halting these drills, which it sees as a rehearsal for an invasion. Russia and China also back what they call a “dual suspension” solution to the standoff.
In November, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported that the country was considering postponing the drills.
Ensuring that the Games take place without interruption from North Korea is a primary concern for the South.
It has invested heavily in infrastructure, building a high-speed train from the Seoul airport to the Olympics site at a cost of $3.
