US-South Korea drills cut short after Trump order: What he wants from North Korea
South Korea and the United States have shortened their annual joint military exercises. President Donald Trump ordered a substantial reduction in the US role in these drills. The Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise was significantly reduced in duration and scope. North Korea condemned the drills, calling them dangerous and hostile. This decision may also be linked to tensions concerning Iran and…
The US and South Korea have decided to shorten their annual joint military drills from 11 days to five, due to President Donald Trump's order to "substantially reduce" the US role in the exercises. The Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise, which began on August 17, will now conclude on Friday, August 21, rather than August 27. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff and a Pentagon official revealed the decision on Wednesday, as reported by Reuters.
The allies will also scale back certain joint field training exercises, with some activities being cancelled or converted into computer simulations. The second phase of the drill, which focused on counteroffensive operations, will be cancelled. The first phase, however, will still focus on defensive operations and simulated responses to potential North Korean attacks.
The decision follows Trump's instructions to the Pentagon on Sunday, citing his "very good relationship" with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Trump has stated that Kim responded to his recent outreach, though he has not disclosed details of the contact. The second phase of the exercises, expected to involve counteroffensive scenarios, was anticipated to be of particular concern to North Korea.
Written by urgent.news from Times of India's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
