In actions that emphasize the changes going on in political alliances around the world, President Donald Trump is asking the Pentagon to scale back US military exercises with South Korea, and is approving a security arrangement between Saudi Arabia and Turkey along with Pakistan.
On Truth Social, President Trump said the joint military exercises with South Korea, scheduled to begin this week, are costly and send a hostile signal to North Korea, long an enemy to the United States, and he wants the war games reduced in size because he has a good relationship with North Korean leader
The president added that he’s disappointed that South Korea didn’t back the US military in its action against Iran.
The military exercised have been going on for decades and are meant to help South Korea grow its military abilities to take on North Korea.
Meanwhile, President Trump said on Sunday he applauds a new security agreement among Pakistan, Turkey and Saudi Arabia in which the three nations will defend themselves and each other in a manner similar to that of NATO.
This represents a change in that the US and its allies have been in charge of guaranteeing the security of Saudi Arabia since a 1945 agreement in which the Saudi family said it would make abundant oil available to the West in exchange for security agreements that would protect the family and its monarchy in the oil-rich territory.
There has been concern that the Saudis may be disappointed that the US and the West have not been able to fully protect Saudi interests in the Persian Gulf area against attacks by Iran on oil facilities and other infrastructure.