'39k soldiers guarding you from Kim': Trump cuts S Korea military drills over Iran

US President Donald Trump has significantly altered security ties between Washington and South Korea, cutting military drills in response to the country's refusal to assist in the US operation against Iran. Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump expressed frustration that Seoul declined the US request for help, stating that the country was nonetheless guarding them from its "next-door neighbor, Kim Jong Un".

Trump also questioned the financial burden of the US defense commitments to South Korea, noting that it costs billions of dollars to protect not only them but other countries as well. The US president also referred to the NATO alliance, highlighting the US expenditure of "hundreds of billions" of dollars on it. Meanwhile, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung called for stronger independent defense capabilities and defended the country's annual civil-defense exercises as defensive and not intended to threaten North Korea.