SEOUL, South Korea (AP) \u2014 The South Korean and U.S. militaries confirmed Wednesday they were significantly scaling back major joint drills, days after President Donald Trump ordered the reduction in an apparent bid to reengage with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.<\/p>\n
Trump had ordered his Pentagon chief to \u201csubstantially reduce\u201d the allies\u2019 summertime Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises,<\/a> just before they began Monday for an 11-day run. Trump cited what he said was a good relationship with Kim and South Korea\u2019s refusal to support him over Iran.<\/a><\/p>\n South Korean officials said Trump\u2019s surprise announcement came without prior notice, baffling many people in the Asian country and raising concerns about joint defense readiness. <\/p>\n South Korea\u2019s military said Wednesday the allies agreed to adjust the duration and scale of the exercises at the request of the U.S. It said the ongoing drills<\/a> would end Friday, not Aug. 27 as initially planned. It added the allies also agreed to downsize some joint field training exercises.<\/p>\n The Pentagon said that it was \u201ccontinuing training that enhances tactical capability\u201d but certain events have been canceled or converted to simulations. \u201cThese adjustments preserve essential readiness and training objectives. There will be no degradation to U.S. training objectives,\u201d a Pentagon statement said.<\/p>\n Shortening of drills raises worries about military readiness <\/p>\n Many experts say Trump\u2019s move<\/a> threatens to hurt the combined U.S.-South Korean defense posture and eventually weaken their decades-long alliance<\/a>.<\/p>\n A reduction or suspension of military drills matters because military commanders change periodically. A one-year suspension of drills would mean commanders unfamiliar with the procedures of the drills would be taking part when they resume, according to Yang Uk, an analyst at Seoul\u2019s Asan Institute for Policy Studies.<\/p>\n Ulchi Freedom Shield<\/a> is largely a computer-simulated command post exercise meant to hone the allies\u2019 ability to deal with potential North Korean aggression. The two countries usually hold a set of field training exercises during the command post exercise period.<\/p>\n The drills and a similar springtime exercise<\/a> are a central pillar of the U.S.-South Korea alliance, which dates to the 1950-53 Korean War. But it\u2019s also a long-running source of tensions with North Korea, which has denounced the exercises<\/a> as a rehearsal for an invasion and responded with provocative missile tests. Days before this month\u2019s drills began, North Korea launched two ballistic missiles<\/a> into the sea.<\/p>\n This month\u2019s drills were initially supposed to be held in two phases in simulation of North Korean attacks \u2014 the first part until this Friday on defensive operations and the second part until Aug. 27 on counteroffensive operations. North Korea is extremely sensitive to counteroffensive drills, according to South Korean media.<\/p>\n North Korea lambasts US-South Korea drills and vows responses <\/p>\n North Korea hasn\u2019t responded to Trump\u2019s overture. But earlier Wednesday, its state news agency, KCNA, published a commentary slamming the U.S.-South Korean military drills as \u201cfrantic\u201d and \u201cextremely dangerous\u201d and vowing to completely frustrate its rivals\u2019 hostilities.<\/p>\n \u201cThe dangerous escalation of the war drills staged by the U.S. and its vassal forces is posing a more serious threat to the security\u201d of North Korea, the commentary said. \u201cOur exercise of right to self-defense will continue to completely neutralize the enemies\u2019 military threat.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \n Sign up for Morning Wire:<\/strong> Many experts said Kim, now emboldened by his advancing nuclear program<\/a> and expanding military cooperation with Russia,<\/a> won\u2019t likely embrace Trump\u2019s overture and return to talks anytime soon unless he\u2019s promised bigger concessions. In response to Trump\u2019s previous outreach, Kim suggested last year that he can only return to talks if the U.S. drops its demand for North Korean denuclearization<\/a> as a precondition for diplomacy.<\/p>\n Trump and Kim<\/a> met three times from 2018-2019 but their high-stakes diplomacy eventually fell apart over wrangling<\/a> over a North Korean demand for extensive sanctions relief in return for limited denuclearization steps.<\/p>\n On Monday, the office of South Korean President Lee Jae Myung expressed hope<\/a> that a \u201cfriendly relationship\u201d between Trump and Kim would lead to \u201cmeaningful dialogue\u201d to promote peace on the Korean Peninsula. Lee<\/a> is a liberal who wants better ties with North Korea.<\/p>\n But his office\u2019s statement drew a strong backlash from conservatives, who alleged Lee\u2019s government was prioritizing the resumption of Kim-Trump diplomacy<\/a> over security concerns caused by Trump\u2019s move. <\/p>\n Trump\u2019s move may focus on South Korea over Iran<\/p>\n In his social media post, Trump said the drills are not only costly but \u201csend a signal that is totally inappropriate and hostile\u201d to North Korea, which he said \u201chas been unthreatening and respectful\u201d during his time in the White House. Trump said he asked Lee if South Korea would join the U.S. in the \u201cdenuclearization\u201d of Iran, \u201cand they said, \u2018No thanks!\u2019\u201d <\/p>\n At separate parliamentary hearings Wednesday, South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun and Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back said neither South Korean nor U.S. officials were informed of Trump\u2019s move before his social media post.<\/p>\n Cho said the alliance<\/a> remains strong, while Ahn said South Korean and U.S. defense officials were maintaining close consultations. <\/p>\n Some experts say Trump\u2019s cut of the drills was more likely designed to apply pressure on South Korea to give him substantial support over the Iran war than to reach out to North Korea. <\/p>\n \u201cTrump\u2019s message is that if you don\u2019t cooperate with us on Iran, we\u2019re not cooperating with you\u201d on the drills either, said Yang, the analyst. \u201cIt\u2019s like he\u2019s asking South Korea to show it\u2019s helping him over Iran\u201d by taking steps like sending warships or reinforcing missile defenses in some areas. <\/p>\n South Korean officials said South Korea and the U.S. are closely discussing practical and military contributions that South Korea can make to help restore freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz<\/a>.<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t the first time that the U.S. and South Korea have scaled back or canceled their drills. <\/p>\n In 2018, Trump abruptly announced the cancellation of a major war game with South Korea, after his first summit with Kim. Announcing the decision, Trump said suspending the \u201cprovocative\u201d war games would \u201csave us a tremendous amount of money.\u201d<\/p>\n
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