Joint military exercises between the U.S. and South Korea got underway on Monday as planned, but President Donald Trump has ordered the Pentagon to “substantially reduce” the planned 10-day training mission.
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Trump says South Korea declined to help denuclearize Iran and that the exercises are costly. He also says he has a “very good relationship” North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and the exercises “send a signal that is totally inappropriate and hostile.”
It’s not yet clear what the scaled-down exercises will look like.
Trump’s order also comes days after North Korea “test” launched a ballistic missile toward the sea in a move some experts say may have been a response to the planned U.S.-South Korea drills.
South Korea responds
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said in a statement Monday morning that the U.S. and South Korea have “maintained close coordination” on the joint exercises and training and would continue to do so.
Lee added that he “hopes that the friendly relationship between the leaders of the United States and North Korea will lead to meaningful U.S.-North Korea dialogue, thereby opening discussions aimed at advancing peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.”
North and South Korea remain technically at war since the Korean War ended in 1953 with an armistice, not a peace treaty.
Trump’s decision criticized
The scaleback is drawing criticism on Capitol Hill. On X, Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., called it “shortsighted and a mistake.”
“Our ability to help defend our ally against the North Koreans is because our forces are well trained and able to coordinate with the South Koreans,” Kelly said.
Leif-Eric Easley, a professor of international studies at Ewha Womans University in Seoul, told NBC News that the exercises “are essential for military forces to be ready and capable of doing their jobs.”
“Scaling them back can damage alliance coordination, slow the process of South Korea taking on greater responsibility for its own defense, and weaken deterrence against possible conflicts in Asia,” he said.
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