Scaled back military drills between U.S. and South Korean forces still increase troop readiness on the Peninsula, General Robert Abrams said on Monday during defense talks in Washington.

Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan met with South Korean Defense Minister Jeong Keyong-doo in the U.S. capital to discuss various defense-related issues.

According to a Department of Defense readout of the meeting, the reduced military drills still “strengthened (troop) combined defense and readiness posture.”

The drills also “contributed to the groundwork for the transition of wartime operational control (OPCON).”

At welcoming remarks prior to the meeting, Shanahan said the two sides