Trump orders Pentagon to scale back joint military exercises with South Korea

President Donald Trump directed the Pentagon to reduce the scale of joint military exercises with South Korea on Sunday, following the Republican leader's assertion that South Korea had declined to aid in denuclearizing Iran. Trump posted on social media that the exercises, set to commence this week, were excessively expensive and conveyed a hostile and improper message to North Korea, which he claimed had shown no aggression or disrespect during his tenure in the White House.

Despite the scheduled 11-day exercise involving 18,000 South Korean troops aimed at enhancing readiness against North Korean threats, Trump ordered Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth to "substantially reduce" the Joint Military Exercises. The planned activities included joint operations in difficult scenarios, such as a live-fire exercise, a wet gap crossing, and the distribution of pre-positioned military equipment, according to US military sources.

Just a day prior, Trump shared an image of himself alongside North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, stating that the two leaders maintain a good relationship "despite the unfriendly look on this particular picture." North Korea's Foreign Ministry labeled the US-South Korean training as a "rehearsal for an aggressive war," intensifying regional instability.

Trump had engaged with North Korea three times during his first term, including a meeting in Singapore in 2019, to discuss the country's nuclear program. Since his return to office, Trump has shown interest in continuing these talks. This is not the first instance where Trump has attempted to halt the exercises; during his initial term, he declared the war games "provocative" and promised to discontinue them unless and until better negotiations with North Korea were observed.