Trump reiterates call to cut S. Korea-U.S. military exercises

Key facts

• U.S. President Donald Trump reiterated his stance on reducing South Korea-U.S. military exercises.
• Trump stated he has a 'very good' relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
• He previously instructed the Pentagon to substantially scale back allied military exercises.
• The Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise was shortened to five days from 11 days.
• Trump cited the cost of the exercises and their inappropriate signal to North Korea.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday reiterated his earlier remarks regarding a directive to scale back South Korea-U.S. military exercises and his positive relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Trump posted his message on social media, which was largely identical to a previous post from August 16, amid speculation about a potential meeting with Kim later this year.

Earlier in August, Trump had instructed the Pentagon to "substantially" reduce the allied military exercises. Following this directive, Seoul and Washington shortened the duration of the annual combined Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise from 11 days to five days, and other field training events were either reduced or canceled.

Trump wrote on Truth Social that, based on his "very good relationship" with Kim Jong-un, he was "not happy" about the prior agreement for joint military exercises with South Korea. He stated that these exercises are costly, with the U.S. bearing much of the expense, and that they send an "inappropriate and hostile" signal to North Korea, which he described as unthreatening and respectful since he became President.

The latest post followed Trump's sharing of photos from his past meetings with Kim, including their first summit in Singapore in June 2018 and their third meeting at the inter-Korean border village of Panmunjom in June 2019. He also repeated his assertion that he and Kim "get along great."

In Tuesday's post, Trump also reiterated a claim that South Korea had not complied with his request for assistance in addressing the Iran war.