Seoul sees Trump's drill cut as pressure on Iran, investment

South Korea's top diplomat has interpreted President Donald Trump's decision to sharply reduce joint military exercises with Seoul as a broader signal of pressure on unresolved bilateral issues, including a stalled investment pledge and the Iran conflict.

Foreign Minister Cho Hyun told a parliamentary hearing on Wednesday that the U.S. president's message appeared to carry multiple layers. "I think President Trump's message includes pressure over several pending issues concerning the South Korean government, as well as a message to North Korea and an intention by the United States to break a stalemate in the Iran war," he said.

One point of friction, Cho indicated, is Seoul's commitment to invest $350 billion in the United States under a trade agreement signed last year. Washington has reportedly sent a proposal outlining potential projects, but South Korea has yet to announce specific plans. Cho explained the delay, saying, "We could not move faster on the investment plan as we had to consider factors such as commercial viability and take legal procedures." He also cited other unexpected problems without elaborating.

The remarks came on the same day the two allies announced they would shorten their annual military drills from 11 days to five and scale back some field training, following Trump's order for a substantial reduction in U.S. participation.

Unification Minister Chung Dong-young, who attended the same hearing, offered a different reading of the move. He said he believes Trump is using the curtailment of exercises—long a source of anger in Pyongyang—to create conditions for a potential new meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.