US-South Korea Drills to Be Halved After Trump Order
South Korean media report the US-South Korea Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise will be cut short following President Trump's order to reduce US participation.
The annual Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) military exercise between the United States and South Korea is expected to be cut short, according to South Korean media reports on Wednesday. The reports, from broadcasters KBS and MBC and newspapers Kyunghyang and DongA, suggest the exercise will be reduced by about half.
The drills, which began on Sunday, were originally scheduled to run into next week. The reports indicate that the first, defensive phase will be completed this week, while a second phase involving counterattack operations will be cancelled or deferred. Some planned field training is also expected to be postponed or scrapped.
The reported reduction follows an order from US President Donald Trump on Sunday to "substantially reduce" US participation in the exercise. Trump cited his "very good relationship" with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as the reason for the move.
Neither US Forces Korea, the Pentagon, nor South Korea's Defence Ministry have commented on the reports.
North Korea, for its part, again denounced the drills on Wednesday. State media KCNA carried a commentary calling the US and South Korea "warmongers" who are raising tensions on the Korean Peninsula. The commentary reiterated Pyongyang's right to self-defence against what it calls military threats from Washington and Seoul. It did not mention Trump's order or the reported plans to reduce the exercise.
Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal has reported, citing US officials, that Trump is pushing aides to arrange an in-person meeting with Kim as soon as this autumn. The report suggests talks could take place during a possible November trip to Asia for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen, China. Trump said on Monday that Kim had responded to his outreach, without disclosing the nature of the contact.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said on Tuesday that the Ulchi exercises are defensive and that Seoul has no intention of using them to attack North Korea or heighten tensions.
The uncertainty over the drills comes as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visits South Korea on Wednesday and Thursday for talks expected to cover developments on the Korean Peninsula and regional security issues.