Trump orders Pentagon to 'substantially' reduce S. Korea-US military exercises
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during an event to sign an executive order regarding vaccine flexibility in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C., Aug. 10. Reuters-Yonhap
U.S. President Donald Trump said Sunday that he has instructed the Pentagon to "substantially" reduce joint South Korea-U.S. military exercises, in what appears to be a conciliatory gesture toward North Korea.
Trump made the remarks in a social media post, saying the exercises are not only "costly" but also send a "totally inappropriate and hostile" signal to the North. The post came as Seoul and Washington kicked off their annual Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) exercise, which Pyongyang has long decried as rehearsals for war.
"Based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong Un, of North Korea, I am not happy with the fact that the United States has, long ago, agreed to participate in Joint Military Exercises with South Korea," Trump wrote on Truth Social, referring to the North Korean leader.
"These exercises are not only costly, with much of these costs paid for by the United States of America (as usual!), but send a signal that is totally inappropriate and hostile, to a Country that, as long as Donald J. Trump has been President, has been unthreatening and respectful," he added.
Trump then noted, "Based on the fact that it is too late to cancel, I have instructed Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, to substantially reduce the Joint Military Exercises!"
It marked the first time in his second term that he had ordered a scaling back of military drills with South Korea. During his first term, the allies suspended or scaled down joint exercises, with Trump referring to them as "war games" that are "provocative," "inappropriate" and "expensive."
The instruction came as North Korea conducted ballistic missile launches this month in apparent protest against the UFS exercise. The move can be seen as a conciliatory gesture toward the North, after the White House repeatedly affirmed that Trump remains open to dialogue with Pyongyang "without any preconditions."
It remains uncertain whether Pyongyang would be willing to come forward for talks with Washington amid deepening economic, diplomatic and military cooperation with Moscow and its efforts to reinforce ties with Beijing.
"Trump's announcement suggests that he may be seeking a return to direct diplomacy with Kim, an item of unfinished business from his first term," Emma Chanlett-Avery, director of political-security affairs at the Asia Society Policy Institute, said in her comments on Trump's post.
"The problem is that Kim has little appetite for negotiations with Trump, given his increased leverage in recent years."
Some observers said Trump's order to scale down the exercises could be part of an effort to divert attention from the Iran war, which has dragged on for more than five months and left energy costs high — a sensitive economic issue ahead of the U.S. midterm elections, where control of Congress is at stake.
The order could trigger a debate over whether the scaling down of joint exercises could affect the allies' deterrence against North Korea at a time when the recalcitrant regime has been doubling down on its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
"Trump's description of the DPRK as 'unthreatening and respectful' is alarming to allies, who have watched the regime steadily improve its missile and nuclear capabilities, while also gaining an additional patron in Russia for its support in the war on Ukraine," Chanlett-Avery said. DPRK stands for North Korea's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
On Saturday, Trump posted a photo of him meeting the North Korean leader in the inter-Korean border village of Panmunjeom in 2019 on social media, repeating his claim that he and Kim "get along great."
The posting reinforced speculation about Trump's apparent desire to rekindle personal diplomacy with Kim. In June, Trump also posted on Truth Social a photo of the leaders' first meeting in Singapore in 2018.
Trump had three in-person meetings with Kim during his first term: the first meeting in Singapore in June 2018, the second in Hanoi in February 2019 and then the Panmunjeom meeting in June 2019.
In Sunday's posting, Trump also said that he had recently asked President Lee Jae Myung whether Seoul would like to join the effort to denuclearize Iran, and was told, "No thanks."
He did not elaborate further. But his remarks appear to reflect Trump's perception that allies, such as South Korea, have not provided as much support as he has wanted in his ongoing war on Iran.
During a White House event in April, Trump said South Korea was "not helpful" to the U.S. despite Washington having stationed its troops "in harm's way" in the Asian country, which he stressed is located "right next to" North Korea's nuclear force.
Following Trump's social media post on Sunday, Sen. Andy Kim (D-NJ), a Korean American lawmaker, expressed his concerns that the post suggests a "disregard" for the Seoul-Washington relationship, stressing that the bilateral alliance is "critical" for U.S. security and prosperity.
"Decisions about joint exercises need to be made jointly — and not announced unilaterally by social media," Kim said in a statement released by his office.
"I will continue to press this administration to strengthen our security, economic, trade and technology ties — which all benefit the American people and the broader Indo-Pacific region."