Keeping the Fire Hot in the East

Yonhap news service in South Korea reported today that "South Korea and the United States have been in consultations to hold more naval drills this year or early next year in a message to North Korea."

"We have been in consultations with the U.S. to carry out several rounds of joint military drills to deal with a limited provocation by the enemy," said Col. Kim Young-cheol of the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The allies were due to end ongoing high-profile military drills in the Yellow Sea later in the day.

"The timing and participating military assets have not been decided yet," the official said.

Can I make an obvious suggestion? Invite China. The article goes on to say the "South's military plans to hold live-fire artillery drills next week."

I suspect we will see a pattern like this develop. South Korea, Japan, and the United States are operating under a theory that they cannot do the same thing they have always done when the North behaves badly and expect a different result than the failures that has occurred in the past. It is a legitimate position, but it implies an alternative exists.

I remain unconvinced an alternative actually does exist at this time, rather I believe that the desire for an alternative exists. Guess we will have to wait and see.