Trump Announces Plans to Reduce Joint Military Drills with South Korea Citing Ties to Kim Jong Un

President Donald Trump announced Sunday that the United States would reduce military exercises with key regional ally South Korea, just hours before they were due to get underway, citing his positive relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Seoul’s lack of assistance with Iran.

“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. “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.”

South Korea has been a close American ally for over 70 years, and the two nations maintain a mutual defense treaty designed to protect against North Korea. The US and South Korea frequently hold joint military drills, and South Korea hosts Camp Humphreys, the largest US military installation overseas.

Ulchi Freedom Shield, the annual joint exercises, began on Monday as planned, according to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff. It remains unclear whether the exercises have been suddenly pared down in light of Trump’s announcement. The 10-day drills were designed to counter drones, GPS disruption, and cyberattacks, involving at least 18,000 South Korean troops this year.

North Korea has long criticized the drills, with its foreign ministry calling them a rehearsal for an aggressive war. South Korea’s presidential Blue House stated it was reviewing Trump’s comments and would continue working with the US to maintain a firm combined defense posture.

In his social media post, Trump also raised his request for South Korea to help with the US war against Iran, noting that the South Korean president declined the request. South Korea subsequently stated it was in close communications with the US regarding military ways to contribute to freedom of passage in the Strait of Hormuz.

Trump has previously maintained a warm relationship with Kim Jong Un, having met him three times during his first term for ultimately unsuccessful denuclearization talks. Last year, Trump expressed a willingness to meet Kim again to discuss peace on the Korean Peninsula during a meeting with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung at the White House.