§ Lord Kennetasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether, in pursuit of their droit de regard over the Unified United Nations Command's activities in South Korea, they have considered whether the military exercises conducted in and around the Korean peninsula by the US-Republic of Korea Combined Forces and the announced 120,000 strong, South Korean-only, three service exercises, to be conducted in October, are conducive to "negotiations towards achieving a peaceful settlement in the Korean peninsula" (H.L. Deb., 6 April 1995, Col. WA 33).
§ Baroness Chalker of WallaseyMilitary exercises conducted by the US-Republic of Korea combined forces or by the Korean armed forces alone are undertaken to maintain the defensive capabilities of such forces. In the interests of building confidence and reducing the risk of conflict on the Peninsula, North Korea has been regularly invited to send observers to such exercises in the past. Sadly, such invitations have always been refused.