U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on the 22nd to extend the "state of emergency involving North Korea", which has been extended since 2008, for one year, and to maintain economic sanctions against North Korea.
On signing the executive order, Trump said in a White House announcement: "the risk of the existence and proliferation of fissionable material that can be used in the manufacture of weapons on the Korean peninsula, as well as the actions and policies of the North Korean government, continue to provide [the United States] with national security. Foreign policy and the economy pose an extraordinary threat. " President George W. Bush signed an executive order in 2008 declaring a state of emergency in view of the "threat" posed by North Korea. The state of emergency has been extended by Barack Obama and Trump.
Trump's 2017 announcement to extend the state of emergency uses the same phrase as "North Korea poses an extraordinary threat." This, however, contrasts with a series of statements he made after his meeting with North Korea's supreme leader, Kim Jong-un.
Trump and Kim Jong un met in Singapore on the 12th to sign a joint statement. In a joint statement, Kim Jong-un reiterated his commitment to "the complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula." Trump returned to the United States on the 13th, posting on social media: "everyone can feel safer now than I was when I became president. There is no longer a nuclear threat from North Korea. "
U.S. State Department spokesman Heather Nolte said on the 21st that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will meet with the DPRK side "at the earliest possible date" to "work hard to implement the outcome of the US-DPRK leaders' meeting."
The U.S. Department of Defense announced Tuesday that it would suspend "indefinitely" two Marine Corps training exercises with South Korea "to support the implementation" of the outcome of the US-South Korean leaders' meeting.
A statement by the Ministry of Defense said: "in order to support the implementation of the outcome of the Singapore Summit and coordinate with its ally South Korea, Defense Minister (James) Matisse has suspended some of the exercises indefinitely. This includes two training exercises for Freedom Guard and two South Korean Marine Corps Exchange programs scheduled for the next three months. "
The statement said that the US military supports the upcoming "diplomatic negotiations" involving Pompeo; if the DPRK continues to negotiate in good faith and the negotiations are fruitful, the US military will make a similar decision. At a press conference after his meeting with Kim Jong-un, Trump said he would suspend a "very provocative" and "costly" routine military exercise between the United States and South Korea.
The U.S. Department of Defense suspended its annual joint military exercise scheduled for August. It was first held in 1976 and was attended by 17,500 US troops and 50, 000 South Korean soldiers in 2017. The DPRK condemned the large-scale military exercise as a preparation for fighting against the DPRK.