A Matter of Perspective, Perhaps

We've been getting ready for one of our two big annual exercises here recently, and I've been trying to get over the cough that remains from my run-in with Korea's version of a cold (which I suspect is a mutant cousin of the bird or swine flu) and finish up some chores before the madness begins. In addition to burrowing in the Kleenex box I've been buried in PowerPoint for the last couple of weeks working on a couple of briefings for the exercise. It's a pretty massive event, and although our part in it is relatively small, it still gets a lot of attention.

This is what our Commanding General said about the event:

“Exercise Key Resolve is an annual training event designed to ensure readiness to defend the Republic of Korea and sustain the capabilities that strengthen the ROK-U.S. Alliance,” said Gen. James D. Thurman, Combined Forces Command commander. “It is based on realistic scenarios, using various assumed threats. The training enables us to train on our critical tasks and work through crisis management with a ‘whole of government’ approach.”

North Korea's government had a different take:

Pyongyang, February 4 (KCNA) -- A spokesman for the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of Korea issued a statement on Saturday denouncing the U.S. imperialists and the south Korean warmongers for officially announcing their plan to stage Key Resolve and Foal Eagle joint military exercises [...].

The U.S. and the Lee group is oft-repeating the stereotyped sophism that Key Resolve is to cope with "possible provocation" from someone and "annual exercises for defense" and the like, but no one would believe this claim. [...]

All facts go to prove that the chieftain of escalating the tension on the Korean Peninsula, the ringleader of deteriorated inter-Korean relations, and the prime mover of a war is none other than the U.S. and the puppet group and the Lee group is the shock-brigade and culprit of the aggressive war of the U.S. imperialists.

 (Read the whole thing here.)

And, just to make sure the point was clear, this one:

No one can vouch that the above-said saber-rattling to be staged in the peninsula and waters around it would not lead to a new war. The service personnel and people of the DPRK are watching with vigilance the highly disturbing moves of aggressors in the peninsula and waters around it and, when a chance presents itself, they will never miss it but root out the very source of national misfortune and regional instability through a merciless punishment.

When aggressors trumpet about "defense," they precisely mean a declaration of a war.

You can't make this stuff up, folks. I could tell the "Eunster" though, he doesn't need his soldiers for "merciless punishment"--all he'd need to do is introduce a computer virus that takes out Microsoft Office.