President Donald Trump ordered the Pentagon to significantly reduce joint military drills with South Korea, just hours before the scheduled start of the Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises originally planned to conclude around August 27. The scaled-back version proceeded with approximately 18,000 South Korean troops alongside US forces. Trump cited three reasons: the cost of the exercises, his personal relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, and Seoul’s reluctance to join US efforts targeting Iran. North Korea conducted ballistic missile tests on at least two occasions in early August 2026, shortly before the exercises were set to begin, which complicates the rationale tied to his relationship with Mr. Kim.
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