Mar 1, 2019

Report: U.S. to end large-scale military exercises with South Korea

Shannon Vavra

U.S Marine Corps officers participate in a joint military exercise in South Korea. Photo: Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images

The Trump administration is set to announce that it will end large-scale joint military exercises with South Korea, replacing them with some mission-specific training to ensure troop readiness, NBC News reports.

Our thought bubble, via Axios' Dave Lawler: Experts worry that by stepping back from the exercises Trump is appeasing North Korea, undermining part of his leverage over Kim Jong-un, and weakening the U.S.-South Korea military alliance.

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Axios

Coronavirus kills 2 Diamond Princess passengers and South Korea sees first death

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins, the CDC, and China's Health Ministry. U.S. numbers include Americans extracted from Princess Cruise ship.

Two elderly Diamond Princess passengers have been killed by the novel coronavirus — the first deaths confirmed among the more than 600 infected aboard the cruise ship. South Korea also announced its first death Thursday.

The big picture: COVID-19 has now killed more than 2,200 people and infected over 75,465 others, mostly in mainland China, where the National Health Commission announced 118 new deaths since Thursday.

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Ina Fried

SoftBank to cut its stake to get T-Mobile's Sprint deal done

Illustration: Rebecca Zisser/Axios

T-Mobile and Sprint announced a revised merger agreement that will see SoftBank getting a smaller share of the combined company, while most shareholders will receive the previously agreed upon exchange rate. The companies said they hope to get the deal as early as April 1.

Why it matters: The amended deal reflects the decline in Sprint's business, while leaving most shareholders' stake intact and removing another hurdle to the deal's closure.

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