North Korea Opposes ROK-US Drills... Sung Kim, US Special Envoy for North Korea, Plans Visit to South Korea

Russian North Korea Nuclear Representative Also Planning Visit to Korea
Focus on South Korea-US-Russia North Korea Nuclear Talks

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo In-ho] During the ROK-US joint military exercises, North Korea nuclear issue officials from the South Korean government, the United States, and Russia will meet in Seoul to discuss North Korea denuclearization and other inter-Korean issues.

North Korea is strongly opposing the ROK-US joint exercises, and if military provocations occur during the exercises, it is expected that the response will shift from dialogue with North Korea to strengthening sanctions against North Korea.

According to diplomatic circles on the 16th, Sung Kim, the US Special Representative for North Korea, who oversees the North Korea nuclear negotiations, is reportedly planning a visit to South Korea in about a week. A diplomatic source said, "It is not yet confirmed, but Kim's visit to Korea is being planned for the period from the 21st to the 24th."

If Kim actually visits South Korea, it will be his second visit in two months since June.

Coinciding with Kim's visit, Igor Morgulov, Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister in charge of North Korea nuclear negotiations for the Asia-Pacific region, is also reportedly planning a visit to South Korea.

Sung Kim, U.S. Special Representative for North Korea, is entering the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 22nd. On this day, Representative Sung Kim will pay a courtesy call to Lee In-young, Minister of Unification, and hold high-level bilateral consultations on North Korea policy with Choi Young-jun, Vice Minister of Unification. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

There is a high possibility of a trilateral North Korea nuclear consultation among Noh Kyu-duk, South Korea's chief nuclear negotiator and head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Peace and Negotiations Division on the Korean Peninsula, Kim, and Deputy Minister Morgulov.

If consultations between the ROK-US and ROK-US-Russia are realized, discussions on resuming dialogue with North Korea and other related measures are expected to be on the table.

During his visit to South Korea in June for a 4-night, 5-day schedule, Kim urged North Korea to engage in unconditional dialogue while holding consultations with the chief nuclear negotiators of the ROK-US and ROK-US-Japan.

This visit by Kim is drawing attention as it is scheduled during the ROK-US joint exercises, which North Korea has recently criticized. The ROK-US will conduct the joint command post exercise from the 16th to the 26th, mainly through computer simulations without outdoor live-fire drills.

On the 15th, the Joint Chiefs of Staff officially announced, "Considering the overall circumstances such as the COVID-19 situation, maintaining the combined defense posture, and supporting diplomatic efforts for denuclearization and peace settlement on the Korean Peninsula, the second half combined command post exercise will be conducted for nine days starting from the 16th."

Although serious concerns were raised until the last minute due to the severe COVID-19 situation in South Korea, both countries have mostly completed vaccination of their troops, and considering the current security situation, it appears that the exercises will proceed as planned.

Therefore, if North Korea nuclear consultations between the ROK and the US take place, there is a possibility that messages regarding North Korea's response to the joint exercises will be issued.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Earlier, from the 10th to the 13th, North Korea issued a critical statement under the name of Kim Yo-jong, Deputy Director of the Workers' Party, coinciding with the start of the 'Crisis Management Staff Exercise,' a preliminary drill for the joint command post exercise, and unilaterally suspended regular communication through the inter-Korean contact channel, which had resumed after about a year.

Subsequently, North Korea's external propaganda media, Echo of Unification, on the 15th published an article titled "Self-destructive Reckless Acts Revealing Aggressive Nature," condemning the ROK-US joint exercises as "the most concentrated expression of the US hostile policy toward the DPRK aimed at crushing our republic by force, threatening the safety of our people, and dangerously destabilizing the situation on the Korean Peninsula through reckless North invasion war exercises."

The media stated, "War exercises and peace cannot coexist," and "The holding of the ROK-US exercises clearly shows that the South Korean authorities' noisy talk about peace and trust whenever they have the chance was nothing but a mere word game."

It further criticized, "While the South Korean military shamelessly makes lame excuses that this war exercise is 'defensive' and 'scaled-down,' the truth is that a hidden dagger cannot be concealed in a sack."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.