S. Korea Partially Suspends Milestone Pact With North After Pyongyang's Satellite Launch

South Korea announced a partial suspension of the 2018 inter-Korean military tension-reduction pact following North Korea's launch of a spy satellite. The decision was approved at a special Cabinet meeting led by Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, which resolved to resume surveillance activities around the border.

• Seoul's resolve in enforcing the terms of the milestone inter-Korean agreement was repeatedly tested by North Korea through a series of incursions and military tests conducted by North Korea earlier this year. This prompted senior South Korean officials to cast doubt on the benefit of having an agreement "that is only kept unilaterally by us".
• There has been evidence of Pyongyang devoting much attention to the launch of a spy satellite, with the regime reportedly eager to generously reward scientists working on the project and refrain from punishing them for initial failures. South Korea has now confirmed that the North Korean satellite appears to have successfully entered the orbit, ending a series of failed tests. Meanwhile, the North said that it has collected images of US military facilities in Guam.
• South Korean Defence Minister Shin Wok-sik said that the country is planning to hold joint military drills with the US and Japan involving a US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to demonstrate their resolve in pushing back against the North's provocations. The move would mark another step in the ongoing tensions on the Korean peninsula, with the North unlikely to abandon its confrontational foreign policy in the near term.