Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- June 21, 2018

South Korean marines march during a military exercise as a part of the annual joint military training called Foal Eagle between South Korea and the U.S. in Pohang, South Korea, April 5, 2018. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji

Reuters: Commentary: The danger of Trump’s decision on Korea ‘war games’

Donald Trump’s unexpected announcement that he was suspending joint U.S.-South Korean military exercises as part of negotiations with the North has caused consternation in Seoul as well as at the Pentagon. The greatest alarm, however, will be amongst Washington’s major allies in Asia and Europe, already made nervous by the U.S. president’s rhetoric that Washington spends too much money on defending them.

It’s not yet certain exactly how much training activity the U.S. military will cancel, but it looks to include several major exercises scheduled for August. Particularly over the last two years, the United States has used such drills to unambiguously threaten Pyongyang over its nuclear program, and the Trump administration clearly hopes that by stopping them, North Korea will keep its missile and nuclear warhead test program on ice.

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Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- June 21, 2018

Analyst: U.S.-North Korea relations go beyond warhead count -- Elizabeth Shim, UPI

Kim Jong Un ends visit to China with a message for the US -- Zachary Cohen, CNN

Sexy metal: the missing element in the Korean puzzle -- Pepe Escobar, Asia Times

If the US military withdraws from Korea, China will be a big loser -- Michael Heng, SCMP

What Awaits Yemen After Hodeida? -- Norman Roule, Cipher Brief

Mohammed Bin Salman: One year as Saudi crown prince -- Al Jazeera

Renewed fight over Libya’s oil threatens entire country -- Mustafa Fetouri, Al-Monitor

Peace within and between Eritrea and Ethiopia -- Lencho Leta, Addis Standard

‘Don’t panic’ as China’s central bank governor calms nerves -- Gordon Watts, Asia Times

China, Russia Cooperating in Arctic As Region Gains Strategic Importance -- Sonja Jordan, National Defense

Mother of all EU summits -- David M. Herszenhorn, Politico.eu

Developing nations likely in the eye of the financial storm. -- The Hill

The Great American Oil Boom -- Jude Clemente, RCE

Violence keeps Central Americans coming to US despite Trump -- Marcos Aleman and Joshua Goodman, AP