Trump Orders Pentagon to Scale Back Joint Military Exercises With South Korea

President Donald Trump announced on Sunday, August 16, 2026, via a Truth Social post, that he had directed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to substantially reduce planned joint military exercises between the United States and South Korea. Trump said he was unhappy that the U.S. had long ago agreed to participate in the drills, criticized South Korea for declining to help with efforts to denuclearize Iran, and cited his "very good relationship" with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, whom he described as having been "unthreatening and respectful" during his time in office. The exercises in question, part of the annual Ulchi Freedom Shield drills, were scheduled to begin the following Monday and run through August 27. Trump characterized the drills as costly and said they "send a signal that is totally inappropriate and hostile" toward North Korea. Separately, North Korea had earlier threatened unspecified "stern steps" against the U.S. and South Korea, calling the upcoming drills a war rehearsal it claimed would be more provocative than the previous year's exercises. As of the announcement, it remained unclear exactly how much the exercises would be scaled back or which specific components would be affected, as Trump's order left implementation details to the Pentagon. Some reporting noted that U.S. and South Korean military officials had warned Kim's regime is learning new battlefield tactics from Russia's war in Ukraine, raising concerns among officials about reducing joint training amid North Korea's expanding capabilities and missile testing; this warning was not addressed by Trump in his stated reasoning. The South Korean government's official response to the announcement was not detailed in available reporting.