SKorean Troops Drilling

"LandepNews"

SKorean Troops Drilling

South Korean military on Monday conducted live-fire drills near disputed border with North Korea in spite of the threats made by Pyongyang to retaliate with a “merciless” attack. North Korea did not retaliate, but tension remained high because the Americans are expected to join forces with the South Korean allies in additional drills that will last over two months. The drills are defensive, but North Korea calls them a preparation for an invasion.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-eun is striving to impose his regime, two months after his father, Kim Jong-il, died. Young Kim is confronted with a country that is economically challenged and with a regime that developed a military nuclear program.
Soon after his recognition as the new leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-eun has received the pledge of allegiance from all the political and military leaders, sending out a message of continuity with the former regime.
A year before he died, Kim Jong-il ordered the shelling of an island where South Korean were living. The shelling, which produced a few casualties among the South Korean civilians, was handled carefully by the government in Seoul, which was accused of not having responded strong enough to this provocation.
However, during his last days, Kim Jong-il was more compliant as the economy of the country became more pressing. Thus, he urged the U.S. officials to reopen the six-party negotiations on the nuclear program, leaning toward a denuclearization of his country in exchange for economic opportunities that would unlock the dire situation.
The drill South Korea executed on Monday happened in the Yellow Sea, near the island that was shelled by the regime in Pyongyang in 2010. The Communist regime has replied with its usual rhetoric about the “total war” and “the collapse of ties” between the two Koreas in a statement issued by a committee for reunification.
The drill ended after two hours, not before the South Korean army fired artillery from five islands near the border. The North Korean army kept a close watch on the developments.
Analysts believe that the threats the regime in Pyongyang made were intended to consolidate the regime at home, or to show the loyalty of the troops to the new leader. A real response is considered very unlikely, because following the island shelling in 2010, South Korean army adopted a more offensive doctrine, and would have responded this time, and that would have been detrimental for the process of consolidation of power the new Communist leader is going through.
The United States and North Korea will engage in talks on the nuclear program on Thursday, the third round since Kim Jong-il demanded the resumption of talks, and the first since his son is in office.

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