The United States and the Republic of Korea (ROK) announced on Sunday they will postpone military drills scheduled for later this month in an effort to bolster a stalled peace push with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). 

ROK Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo and U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper announced the decision in Bangkok on the sidelines of the sixth Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Defense Ministers' Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus). 

"I don't see this as a concession. I see this as a good faith effort ... to enable peace," Esper said, as U.S. and ROK had planned to stage joint air drills later this month. 

ROK's Yonhap said Pyongyang still angrily protested the upcoming drills, warning of "shocking punishment" that Washington cannot cope with if the drills go ahead as planned. 

On board the plane to Seoul where he starts an Asian tour Thursday, Esper also told reporters that they will adjust exercise posture "either more or less depending on what diplomacy may require." 

His comments came after the DPRK reiterated its demands for the combined exercise to be scrapped. 

The DPRK threatened on Wednesday to retaliate if the United States goes ahead with scheduled military drills with the ROK, ramping up pressure on Washington to change course as a year-end DPRK deadline for U.S. flexibility approaches.  

Pyongyang has tested the limits of engagement with a string of missile launches, emboldened by the impeachment inquiry into U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington. 

(With input from agencies)

(Cover: U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper (L) shakes hands with ROK Defence Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo at a joint news conference in Seoul, ROK, November 15, 2019. /Reuters Photo)