{
  "id": 1377316,
  "title": "Trump scales back joint military drills with South Korea, calling them 'hostile'",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/16/trump-scales-back-joint-military-drills-with-south-korea-calling-them",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-16T23:39:59.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "ABC News AU",
    "slug": "abc-news-au",
    "url": "https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-08-17/trump-says-south-korean-military-drills-to-scale-back-/107045056"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "US President Donald Trump has ordered the Pentagon to reduce the scale of planned joint military exercises with South Korea, accusing the nation of declining to help denuclearise Iran. Trump claimed the costly drills sent a \"totally inappropriate and hostile\" message to North Korea. However, South Korea's defence ministry insisted the exercises would go ahead as scheduled. Trump lambasted North Korea's \"unthreatening and respectful\" behavior during his time in office, stating he had asked for South Korean involvement in Iran's denuclearisation but was met with a refusal. North Korea threatened unspecified stern measures against the US and South Korea, describing the military drills as a rehearsal for an aggressive war. Despite the tensions, experts believe North Korea uses these drills as a pretext to increase weapon testing and bolster public support for its leader. The US and South Korean forces were set to conduct complex joint operations, including live-fire exercises and precision targeting. The Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises, which were slated to begin this week, aim to enhance alliance readiness in the face of North Korean threats. The joint training follows North Korea's recent resumption of ballistic missile testing, which is banned by the UN.",
  "summary": "US President Donald Trump has instructed the Pentagon to substantially reduce joint military exercises with South Korea. According to Trump, these exercises are costly and send a \"totally inappropriate and hostile\" signal to North Korea.\n\nThe exercises in question are the annual Ulchi Freedom Shield joint military drills, scheduled to run from August 17 to 27, with around 18,000 South Korean military personnel participating. The drills are set to include operations to counter drones, disrupt GPS signals, and cyberattacks.\n\nTrump also cited his \"very good relationship\" with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korea's stance on the US-Israeli conflict with Iran as reasons for scaling back the exercises. The New Straits Times reported that Trump mentioned South Korea's refusal to take part in actions against Iran.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Arutz Sheva - Israel National News",
        "title": "South Korea clarifies: Joint military exercises with US will proceed as planned",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/17/south-korea-clarifies-joint-military-exercises-with-us-will-proceed",
        "published": "2026-08-17T00:46:37.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}