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South Korean soldiers stand guard before the military demarcation line and North Korea's Panmun Hall, in the truce village of Panmunjom. AFP/Getty Images

US and South Korea resume army drills as relations with Kim Jong-un's regime improve

The drills were delayed so that the Winter Olympics could take place without tension.

THE UNITED STATES and South Korea kicked off a low-key joint military drill as a diplomatic thaw over North Korea gathered pace.

Tension on the peninsula has showed signs of easing in recent months after the isolated, nuclear-armed North proposed summits with the South and their “imperialist enemy” the US.

The annual Foal Eagle drill — a series of field training exercises involving some 11,500 American and 290,000 South Korean troops — began early this morning, Seoul’s defense ministry spokesman said.

The drill — which was delayed to avoid clashing with February’s Winter Olympics in the South — will be held for a month in April, about half the time it usually lasts.

This year’s drills feature fewer strategic weapons like a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, Seoul army said earlier. The deployment of such powerful weapons at past drills has frequently drawn an angry response from the North.

The two allies are also set to stage the annual Key Resolve drill — a tabletop exercise using mainly computer-based simulations — for the usual duration of two weeks beginning late April.

Pyongyang, which habitually slams the joint army drills between the South and the US as a rehearsal for invasion, has remained relatively quiet on the issue in recent weeks.

The Foal Eagle drill started the same day as a historic concert by South Korean pop stars in Pyongyang, which will be staged late Sunday as a peace gesture ahead of this month’s inter-Korea summit.

Eleven South Korean acts — including popular K-pop girlband Red Velvet — are set perform in the North Korean capital — the first such concert for more than a decade.

The flurry of reconciliatory moves comes after the Pyeongchang Winter Games, which the North used to mount a charm offensive, sending athletes, cheerleaders and even leader Kim Jong Un’s powerful sister as a delegate.

Kim, who last week met with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing on his first overseas trip as leader, also met Olympics chief Thomas Bach in Pyongyang on Saturday, thanking him for helping to bring about a “dramatic thawing” of tensions on the peninsula.

Kim is set to hold a summit with South Korean President Moon Jae-in on 27 April at the border truce village of Panmunjom — the third time ever that any leaders of the two rivals have met.

© AFP 2018

Read: China and North Korea confirm that Kim Jong-un took a secret trip to Beijing >

Read: Trump to hold historic first meeting with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un >

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    Mute Pádraig Ó hAirtnéada
    Favourite Pádraig Ó hAirtnéada
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    Nov 22nd 2022, 1:11 AM

    Unbelievable in a normal society but par for the course in Ireland. Nobody will be held accountable as per usual….

    183
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    Mute Liz O'Neill
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    Nov 22nd 2022, 12:47 AM

    Probably kills 99% of all known wildlife.

    131
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    Mute Paul Gorry
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    Nov 22nd 2022, 12:11 AM

    So they admit their wrong. Stomach churning stuff altogether. Imagine criticism surpassing fact.

    105
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    Mute Seán O'Sullivan
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    Nov 22nd 2022, 4:00 AM

    @Paul Gorry: be they’re ffs

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    Mute Mary Nugent
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    Nov 22nd 2022, 5:53 AM

    So are wet wipes ok to flush now?

    18
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    Mute Dave Ryan
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    Nov 22nd 2022, 8:43 AM

    @Mary Nugent: definitely….im a little confused tho where they actually pouring normal everyday bleach in the river…if so i would imagine it would take thousands of ltrs of it to try clean a river…..it sounds as mad as trump saying we could inject bleach to get rid of civid

    37
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    Mute Asio_Otus
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    Nov 22nd 2022, 9:42 AM

    @Dave Ryan: from the article above, they were using sodium hypochlorite, a heavily regulated industrial chemical, that has strict rules on it in ireland as to its use and release into the environment or waterways.
    It might be baffling, if it wasn’t a local authority. More backwards policies as per usual

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    Mute Dave Ryan
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    Nov 22nd 2022, 9:45 AM

    @Asio_Otus: its unbelievable… obviously its true and its happened for nearly 30 years….it just still seems absolutely crazy and unbelievable it really is something like trump would say but everyone knows ya just can’t do it

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    Mute Liz O'Neill
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    Nov 22nd 2022, 10:31 AM

    @Mary Nugent: It’s never OK to flush your wet wipes down the loo. Dispose of them like a grown up and put them in the bin.

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    Mute Mick Tobin
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    Nov 22nd 2022, 5:24 AM

    That’d be Blekingfjord in Old Norse.

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    Mute Niall Lawlor
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    Nov 24th 2022, 2:07 PM

    There were otters and seatrout , place/flounder in that bay in the 60′s 70′s … it is devoid of life now other than winter swimmers. The source of the contamination must be found ..this is a brooklet …not a river ..it is not that hard @Pat Fitzgerald

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