South Korea asked the U.S. to delay joint military exercises until after the Winter Olympics to "lower the chances of North Korea taking provocative actions" during the PyeongChang Games, which Seoul "wants to use to showcase the country's development," according to Demetri Sevastopulo of the FINANCIAL TIMES. Four people familiar with the situation said that Seoul wanted to postpone the start of the annual spring exercises -- called Key Resolve and Foal Eagle -- until after the Paralympics, which end on March 18. Two of those people said that the U.S. was "likely to accept the request." The move comes as tensions on the Korean peninsula have risen to the point where Seoul and Tokyo are concerned that the U.S. defense department "may be preparing for a strike on North Korea" in an effort to convince Kim Jong Un to abandon his weapons programs. Bruce Klingner, a Korea expert at the Heritage Foundation, said that the move was "prudent given the nature of the Kim regime." Klinger: "Its neighbors are fearful that defensive exercises or a sports event would be used as an excuse for a provocation or deadly attack. The fear is not unfounded since Pyongyang destroyed a civilian airliner in 1987 in an attempt to derail the 1988 Seoul Olympics" (FT, 12/12). BLOOMBERG's Kong & Tweed reported the South Korea-U.S. alliance "continues to discuss the way ahead on the exercises Key Resolve and Foal Eagle, to include the appropriate timing," Commander David Benham, public affairs officer at U.S. Pacific Command in Hawaii, said in an email. He added, "The alliance will issue a statement at the appropriate time." Postponing the drills "could help create conditions for talks between the U.S. and North Korea." China called on the U.S. to halt exercises and start talks with Pyongyang, part of its "suspension-for-suspension" proposal that would also require Kim to freeze nuclear and missile tests (BLOOMBERG, 12/12).
