North Korea Backs Down as South Korean Military Drills Go Ahead

Pyongyang has said it will not retaliate for live-fire drills being conducted on its maritime border.

It looks like Seoul has won the international game of chicken with its rival to the north. North Korea had promised it would launch massive strikes should the South carry out planned military exercises near the island of Yeonpyeong Monday, but has now said firing back would not be worth it. The North Korean army responded to similar drills on the island on Nov. 23 by launching an artillery barrage that killed four South Koreans and dramatically raised tensions between the two countries. Although local residents were evacuated to bomb shelters and fears of an all-out military confrontation with the North were running high, the 90-minute exercise appears to have concluded without incident.