U.S. Defense Department "Implementing Order to Scale Back South Korea-U.S. Drills"...Trump: "Kim Jong Un Responded to Request for Dialogue" (Comprehensive)

Trump Refers to South Korea-U.S. Drills as "War Games"
Tells Reporters, "I Get Along Well with Kim Jong Un"
Expresses Dissatisfaction Over South Korea's Refusal to Support Iran War
Also Voices Frustration Over Defense Cost Sharing
No Answers on UFS Adjustments or Status of South Korea-U.S. Consultations

The U.S. Department of Defense (War Department) announced on August 17 (local time) that it is implementing U.S. President Donald Trump's directive to scale back joint military exercises with South Korea. On the same day, President Trump stated that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un had responded to his request for dialogue, referring to the joint drills as "war games." Following his instruction to reduce the drills out of dissatisfaction with South Korea’s refusal to support the Iran war, President Trump again emphasized his ties with Kim Jong Un—drawing growing attention to the future direction of the South Korea-U.S. alliance and North Korea policy.

U.S. Department of Defense (War Department) Homepage

An official from the U.S. Department of Defense (War Department) told The Asia Business Daily that "the Department of War is actively working on executing the Commander-in-Chief’s directive."

This confirms that after President Trump announced the previous day that he ordered the Secretary of Defense to drastically reduce joint South Korea-U.S. exercises, the Department of Defense has in fact begun work to carry out this order.

However, the Department of Defense did not respond to questions about exactly how the ongoing Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) joint exercise will be adjusted, or whether related discussions with the South Korean side have begun.

Previously, regarding President Trump's announcement, the Department of Defense had said there were “no changes to announce” and referred inquiries to the White House. Yet within hours, it announced it is implementing the President’s directive—raising questions about the specific scope and timing of the drill reductions.

The New York Times (NYT) reported, citing senior U.S. military officials, that President Trump’s sudden announcement caught the Department of Defense off guard. This has led to doubts about whether sufficient prior consultation took place among the department and other relevant agencies before the decision was made.

Trump: "Kim Jong Un Responded to My Request for Dialogue...Very Positive"

On Truth Social the previous day, President Trump highlighted his "very good relationship" with Kim Jong Un and directed the scaling back of the joint exercises. Bloomberg reported that President Trump gave the instruction to reduce the South Korea-U.S. drills out of dissatisfaction with South Korea’s lack of active support for the Iran war.

President Donald Trump's Truth Social

In this context, when reporters at the White House asked whether Kim Jong Un had responded to his request for talks, President Trump replied, "He has," characterizing the situation as "very positive." However, the White House did not provide further details about how or what message Kim conveyed.

Some observers have raised concerns that reducing the exercises could weaken the U.S.'s regional deterrence against North Korea and China, but President Trump dismissed these worries.

When asked whether reducing the joint drills prioritizes North Korean interests over those of long-time ally South Korea, President Trump argued, "On the contrary, I am making the situation much safer."

In particular, President Trump described the South Korea-U.S. joint drills as "war games." He stated, "I get along well with Kim Jong Un," and argued that "what I am doing is making the situation safer."

"Dissatisfaction Over South Korea’s Refusal to Support Iran War" Made Public Again

On this day, President Trump once again publicly expressed his dissatisfaction with South Korea’s refusal to support the Iran war. He revealed that he had recently called the President of South Korea and said, "We don’t need help with the Iran issue, but if you want, please help us." However, he claimed that South Korea refused this request.

President Trump continued, "We are keeping 39,000 troops there to protect South Korea from Kim Jong Un, but they won’t even help with a very simple military operation in Iran. Then why are we helping South Korea?"

He also pointed out that the United States is spending enormous amounts to protect its allies, including South Korea. "Especially when they don’t help us, we cannot go around protecting all these countries," he said, expressing frustration that South Korea tries to avoid being involved in defending the Strait of Hormuz even though it receives a significant portion of its crude oil supplies through the strait.

President Trump also brought up again that during his first term, he demanded South Korea pay more for the cost of stationing U.S. Forces Korea. He claimed that at the time, South Korea agreed to pay about 3 billion dollars per year, but former President Joe Biden rolled back this agreement.

As President Trump highlights South Korea’s lack of cooperation on the Iran issue and its defense cost burden, while also stressing the possibility of dialogue with Kim Jong Un, attention is focusing on how the scaling back of South Korea-U.S. joint drills may intersect with future negotiations with North Korea.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.