Trump orders cuts to South Korea joint drills despite warnings about Kim regime
President says he ‘gets along great’ with dictator but officials say Ukraine war is boosting North’s capabilities Donald Trump has said he is scaling back joint US military drills with South Korea aimed at deterring North Korea, despite military officials from both countries warning that Kim Jong-un’s regime is learning new battlefield tactics from the Ukraine war. The drills under Ulchi Freedom Shield, one of two main annual exercises held by South Korea and the US, start on Monday and run until 27 August. They were expected to involve about 18,000 South Korean troops, alongside US forces and personnel from 11 of the 18 member states of the United Nations Command (UNC), the multinational body that oversees the 1953 armistice that halted hostilities of the Korean war. However, on Sunday evening, Trump said he was “not happy” with US participation “based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong-un”. He also said South Korea had refused to help in the “denuclearisation of the Islamic republic of Iran”.
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It has little reason to see this as meaningful.” Last week, South Korean and US military officials said they would incorporate into the drills lessons drawn from North Korean troops’ increasing battlefield experience in Ukraine , including new drone tactics. At a joint briefing, Col Ryan Donald, the public affairs director for the US-led commands in South Korea, said this year’s scenario would reflect “drones, GPS disruption [and] cyber-attacks”, threats he linked directly to North Korean soldiers who have deployed and fought in Ukraine as part of Pyongyang’s military support for Russia. “They’ve taken those lessons they learned there and brought them back to North Korea, that changes the DPRK capability,” Donald said, referring to North Korea’s formal name. “Our training accounts for that threat, that is why the exercise looks different [from previous exercises], and over the last five years it’s continually evolved.” Speaking to the Guardian at a separate briefing, Lt Gen Scott Winter, deputy commander of the UNC, said the threats being countered “reflect the increased use of these technologies and the understanding that North Korea has contemporary battlefield experience”. “We’re very conscious that North Korea has used this as an opportunity to test a number of its ballistic missile systems,” he said, adding that this year’s drills would be “bigger and better than ever”.
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President says he ‘gets along great’ with dictator but US officials say Ukraine war is boosting North’s capabilities Donald Trump has said he is scaling back joint US military drills with South Korea aimed at deterring North Korea, despite military officials from both countries warning that Kim Jong-un’s regime is learning new battlefield tactics from the Ukraine war. The drills under Ulchi Freedom Shield, one of two major annual exercises held by South Korea and the US, start on Monday and run until 27 August. They were expected to involve about 18,000 South Korean troops, alongside US forces and personnel from 11 of the 18 member states of the United Nations Command (UNC), the multinational body that oversees the 1953 armistice that halted hostilities of the Korean war. However, on Sunday evening, the president said he was “not happy” with US participation “based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong-un”. He also said South Korea had refused to help in the “denuclearisation of the Islamic republic of Iran”.
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President says he ‘gets along great’ with dictator but US officials say Ukraine war is boosting North’s capabilities Donald Trump has said he is scaling back joint US military drills with South Korea aimed at deterring North Korea, despite military officials from both countries warning that Kim Jong-un’s regime is learning new battlefield tactics from the Ukraine war. The drills under Ulchi Freedom Shield, one of two major annual exercises held by South Korea and the US, start on Monday and run until 27 August. They were expected to involve about 18,000 South Korean troops, alongside US forces and personnel from 11 of the 18 member states of the United Nations Command (UNC), the multinational body that oversees the 1953 armistice that halted hostilities of the Korean war. However, on Sunday evening, the president said he was “not happy” with US participation “based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong-un”. He also said South Korea had refused to help in the “denuclearisation of the Islamic republic of Iran”.
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President says he ‘gets along great’ with dictator but US officials say Ukraine war is boosting North’s capabilities Donald Trump has said he is scaling back joint US military drills with South Korea aimed at deterring North Korea, despite military officials from both countries warning that Kim Jong-un’s regime is learning new battlefield tactics from the Ukraine war. The drills under Ulchi Freedom Shield, one of two major annual exercises held by South Korea and the US, start on Monday and run until 27 August. They were expected to involve about 18,000 South Korean troops, alongside US forces and personnel from 11 of the 18 member states of the United Nations Command (UNC), the multinational body that oversees the 1953 armistice that halted hostilities of the Korean war. However, on Sunday evening, the president said he was “not happy” with US participation “based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong-un”. He also said South Korea had refused to help in the “denuclearisation of the Islamic republic of Iran”.
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President says he ‘gets along great’ with dictator but US officials say Ukraine war is boosting North’s capabilities Donald Trump has said he is scaling back joint US military drills with South Korea aimed at deterring North Korea, despite military officials from both countries warning that Kim Jong-un’s regime is learning new battlefield tactics from the Ukraine war. The drills under Ulchi Freedom Shield, one of two major annual exercises held by South Korea and the US, start on Monday and run until 27 August. They were expected to involve about 18,000 South Korean troops, alongside US forces and personnel from 11 of the 18 member states of the United Nations Command (UNC), the multinational body that oversees the 1953 armistice that halted hostilities of the Korean war. However, on Sunday evening, the president said he was “not happy” with US participation “based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong-un”. He also said South Korea had refused to help in the “denuclearisation of the Islamic republic of Iran”.
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President says he ‘gets along great’ with dictator but US officials say Ukraine war is boosting North’s capabilities Donald Trump has said he is scaling back joint US military drills with South Korea aimed at deterring North Korea, despite military officials from both countries warning that Kim Jong-un’s regime is learning new battlefield tactics from the Ukraine war. The drills under Ulchi Freedom Shield, one of two major annual exercises held by South Korea and the US, start on Monday and run until 27 August. They were expected to involve about 18,000 South Korean troops, alongside US forces and personnel from 11 of the 18 member states of the United Nations Command (UNC), the multinational body that oversees the 1953 armistice that halted hostilities of the Korean war. However, on Sunday evening, the president said he was “not happy” with US participation “based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong-un”. He also said South Korea had refused to help in the “denuclearisation of the Islamic republic of Iran”.
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President says he ‘gets along great’ with dictator but US officials say Ukraine war is boosting North’s capabilities Donald Trump has said he is scaling back joint US military drills with South Korea aimed at deterring North Korea, despite military officials from both countries warning that Kim Jong-un’s regime is learning new battlefield tactics from the Ukraine war. The drills under Ulchi Freedom Shield, one of two major annual exercises held by South Korea and the US, start on Monday and run until 27 August. They were expected to involve about 18,000 South Korean troops, alongside US forces and personnel from 11 of the 18 member states of the United Nations Command (UNC), the multinational body that oversees the 1953 armistice that halted hostilities of the Korean war. However, on Sunday evening, the president said he was “not happy” with US participation “based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong-un”. He also said South Korea had refused to help in the “denuclearisation of the Islamic republic of Iran”.
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President says he ‘gets along great’ with dictator but officials say Ukraine war is boosting North’s capabilities Donald Trump has said he is scaling back joint US military drills with South Korea aimed at deterring North Korea, despite military officials from both countries warning that Kim Jong-un’s regime is learning new battlefield tactics from the Ukraine war. The drills under Ulchi Freedom Shield, one of two main annual exercises held by South Korea and the US, start on Monday and run until 27 August. They were expected to involve about 18,000 South Korean troops, alongside US forces and personnel from 11 of the 18 member states of the United Nations Command (UNC), the multinational body that oversees the 1953 armistice that halted hostilities of the Korean war. However, on Sunday evening, Trump said he was “not happy” with US participation “based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong-un”. He also said South Korea had refused to help in the “denuclearization of the Islamic republic of Iran”.
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President says he ‘gets along great’ with dictator but officials say Ukraine war is boosting North’s capabilities Donald Trump has said he is scaling back joint US military drills with South Korea aimed at deterring North Korea, despite military officials from both countries warning that Kim Jong-un’s regime is learning new battlefield tactics from the Ukraine war. The drills under Ulchi Freedom Shield, one of two main annual exercises held by South Korea and the US, start on Monday and run until 27 August. They were expected to involve about 18,000 South Korean troops, alongside US forces and personnel from 11 of the 18 member states of the United Nations Command (UNC), the multinational body that oversees the 1953 armistice that halted hostilities of the Korean war. However, on Sunday evening, Trump said he was “not happy” with US participation “based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong-un”. He also said South Korea had refused to help in the “denuclearization of the Islamic republic of Iran”.
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President says he ‘gets along great’ with dictator but officials say Ukraine war is boosting North’s capabilities Donald Trump has said he is scaling back joint US military drills with South Korea aimed at deterring North Korea, despite military officials from both countries warning that Kim Jong-un’s regime is learning new battlefield tactics from the Ukraine war. The drills under Ulchi Freedom Shield, one of two main annual exercises held by South Korea and the US, start on Monday and run until 27 August. They were expected to involve about 18,000 South Korean troops, alongside US forces and personnel from 11 of the 18 member states of the United Nations Command (UNC), the multinational body that oversees the 1953 armistice that halted hostilities of the Korean war. However, on Sunday evening, Trump said he was “not happy” with US participation “based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong-un”. He also said South Korea had refused to help in the “denuclearisation of the Islamic republic of Iran”.
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President says he ‘gets along great’ with dictator but officials say Ukraine war is boosting North’s capabilities Donald Trump has said he is scaling back joint US military drills with South Korea aimed at deterring North Korea, despite military officials from both countries warning that Kim Jong-un’s regime is learning new battlefield tactics from the Ukraine war. The drills under Ulchi Freedom Shield, one of two main annual exercises held by South Korea and the US, start on Monday and run until 27 August. They were expected to involve about 18,000 South Korean troops, alongside US forces and personnel from 11 of the 18 member states of the United Nations Command (UNC), the multinational body that oversees the 1953 armistice that halted hostilities of the Korean war. However, on Sunday evening, Trump said he was “not happy” with US participation “based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong-un”. He also said South Korea had refused to help in the “denuclearisation of the Islamic republic of Iran”.
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President says he ‘gets along great’ with dictator but officials say Ukraine war is boosting North’s capabilities Donald Trump has said he is scaling back joint US military drills with South Korea aimed at deterring North Korea, despite military officials from both countries warning that Kim Jong-un’s regime is learning new battlefield tactics from the Ukraine war. The drills under Ulchi Freedom Shield, one of two main annual exercises held by South Korea and the US, start on Monday and run until 27 August. They were expected to involve about 18,000 South Korean troops, alongside US forces and personnel from 11 of the 18 member states of the United Nations Command (UNC), the multinational body that oversees the 1953 armistice that halted hostilities of the Korean war. However, on Sunday evening, Trump said he was “not happy” with US participation “based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong-un”. He also said South Korea had refused to help in the “denuclearisation of the Islamic republic of Iran”.
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President says he ‘gets along great’ with dictator but officials say Ukraine war is boosting North’s capabilities Donald Trump has said he is scaling back joint US military drills with South Korea aimed at deterring North Korea, despite military officials from both countries warning that Kim Jong-un’s regime is learning new battlefield tactics from the Ukraine war. The drills under Ulchi Freedom Shield, one of two main annual exercises held by South Korea and the US, start on Monday and run until 27 August. They were expected to involve about 18,000 South Korean troops, alongside US forces and personnel from 11 of the 18 member states of the United Nations Command (UNC), the multinational body that oversees the 1953 armistice that halted hostilities of the Korean war. However, on Sunday evening, Trump said he was “not happy” with US participation “based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong-un”. He also said South Korea had refused to help in the “denuclearisation of the Islamic republic of Iran”.
