WASHINGTON — President Trump called for scaling down the joint military exercises with South Korea as an overture to North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, while throwing shade at Seoul for not being more helpful on Iran.
The US had already scrapped a joint amphibious landing drill that had been planned for September, but Trump’s pronouncement comes as he has sought a meeting with the North Korean tyrant later this year.
“Based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong Un, of North Korea, I was not happy with the fact that the United States had, long ago, agreed to participate in Joint Military Exercises with South Korea,” Trump posted on Truth Social.
“[B]ased on the fact that it was too late to cancel, I instructed Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, to substantially reduce the Joint Military Exercises! ” he added.
“While somewhat unrelated (?), I recently asked the President of South Korea if they would like to join us in the Denuclearization of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and they said, ‘No thanks!’”
Notably, North Korea has long had close ties to Iran, though it’s unclear how helpful Pyongyang has been to Tehran during its war with the US.
Trump met with North Korea’s brutal leader three times in person during his first administration and previously pushed to scrap the joint military exercises with South Korea that have famously alienated Pyongyang.
The president’s overtures to Kim come as North Korea has seen a remarkable economic boom, with its gross domestic product allegedly showing 3% growth for two years, driven by increased cooperation with Russia and expanded trade with China.
North Korea has sent thousands of soldiers to fight for Russia in its war against Ukraine. The pariah state has also benefited from arms sales to Moscow.
Meanwhile, South Korea is sitting on a stockpile of munitions and advanced interceptors, including the Cheongung-II, at a time when Ukraine and other countries are desperate for more sophisticated firepower. So far, Seoul has been hesitant to send some of those weapons.
The US is reportedly running low on certain munitions and interceptors, including Patriots, something Trump has publicly downplayed as the Pentagon ramps up pressure on defense contractors to speed up production.
Trump has long criticized South Korea for staying out of the war in Iran, a grievance he’s had with many US allies.
During his first term, Trump had called off joint exercises in South Korea, raising similar concerns that they were too provocative and costly, grumbling that America foots most of the bill.
