The Aporia · In cutting joint drills, Trump has given South Korea’s president what he wants. So why is Seoul so uneasy?

In cutting joint drills, Trump has given South Korea’s president what he wants. So why is Seoul so uneasy?

Read the original at The Guardian ↗

Cite

APA MLA Chicago

Seoul, R. R. i. (2026, August 19). In cutting joint drills, Trump has given South Korea’s president what he wants. So why is Seoul so uneasy? The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/aug/19/trump-south-korea-alliance-military-seoul-security

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Quick Summary

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung had advocated for reducing joint military exercises with the US as a way to draw North Korea back into dialogue. Last week, Donald Trump announced via social media that he would be cutting these drills, echoing one of Lee's own proposals. The move has caused unease in Seoul, however, where some have expressed concern that it weakens a key pillar of deterrence and undermines South Korean security. Conservative parties and newspapers have denounced the decision as a "security disaster", while some progressive outlets see it as a positive step towards reducing tensions with North Korea.

Written by AI on 2026-08-19, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

President Trump has instructed the Pentagon to reduce US involvement in joint military exercises with South Korea, which have been cut short from August 27 to August 21. The decision was made after Trump cited his "very good" relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and claimed that the exercises were expensive. Trump also hinted that his decision was influenced by South Korea's refusal to assist in the "denuclearization" of Iran.

The Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises, which started on Monday, have been reduced in scope and scale, with some events canceled or converted to simulations. The South Korean National Defense Ministry said that the two countries "have agreed, at the request of the U.S. side, to make some adjustments to the duration and scale of the exercise."

The decision has caused alarm among South Koreans and experts concerned about the deteriorating security situation in Northeast Asia. Some analysts have warned that Trump's move risks alienating South Korea and undercutting US credibility in Asia.

South Korea's president, Lee Jae Myung, has renewed his push to regain independent control of the military from the US in the event of war and urged faster progress in acquiring nuclear-powered submarines. Lee said that Seoul should proceed without disruption with the planned transfer of wartime operational control (Opcon) of South Korean forces from the US.

The decision to reduce joint exercises with South Korea comes as Trump has grown frustrated with the slow rollout of a $350 billion trade and investment framework between the two countries, which he sees as essential for his North Korea strategy. Trump's statement seemed to disregard North Korea's recent spate of missile tests and Pyongyang's threats of a "new level" of nuclear deterrence in response to the planned drills.

The move has also raised questions about whether Trump is prioritizing his relationship with Kim over South Korea, a key US ally. South Korea's president has said that he will assist Trump as a "pacemaker" if Trump becomes a peacemaker, but experts are concerned about the implications of Trump's decision for regional security and the future of the US-South Korea alliance.

Written for “Trump Cuts South Korea Drills” on 2026-10-31, grounded in this article and the 21 other(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted

sentences that state something as happening or true

Uncertain

25%

6 of 24 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")

Leaning

Leans left

of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate

Publisher signals

66/100

The Guardian's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.

Outlets on this story

Politics

Same framing elsewhere

articles that frame the event the way this one does

Analyzed 2026-08-19 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability

Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

The Guardian · 2736 article(s) · 6 correction(s) detected

Running correction rate · 6 correction(s)

2026-10-19

Mother assessed as posing no immediate risk to others three weeks before Elizabeth Struhs’ manslaughter, inquest hears

2026-10-14

Rachel Smith will turn 39 in prison. The high court says she could freeze her eggs from behind bars

2026-10-03

Tennessee’s top prison official resigning after botched execution of Christa Pike

2026-10-01

Tennessee governor suspends all executions after Christa Pike’s lethal injections fail

2026-09-28

Extra 1,000 prison beds announced in NSW as union warns against arresting ‘our way out of domestic violence’

2026-09-05

Australia’s housing prices are trending down. See which suburbs have had the biggest falls

Who wrote this

Raphael Rashid in Seoul

10 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction

🔮 Propaganda loudspeakers aimed at South Korea will be ready to restart within days along the entire border, Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, has said amid a worsening of ties between the two countries.

2026-10-22 · assertive framing · North Korea prepares to restart propaganda loudspeakers as ties sour with South

🔮 For the month that she was stranded, the group of self-appointed guardians took turns to protect her, patrolling the waterfront at night for visitors who might disturb the animal.

2026-10-21 · assertive framing · The night watch: the YouTubers who were guardians of a shark stuck in a South Korean canal

🔮 South Korea will take legal action if it finds that shipments of fuel from its ports to Russia broke domestic law, the government has said, responding to a Guardian report on the trade.

2026-10-08 · mixed framing · South Korea threatens legal action if fuel shipments to Russia found to have broken law

🔮 North Korea would bear “all responsibility” for any future developments, he said.

2026-09-30 · assertive framing · South Korea calls for apology from North Korea after mine injures three soldiers

🔮 According to reports, the assets under consideration include a P-8 Poseidon aircraft, which would mark South Korea’s first overseas deployment of a maritime patrol aircraft, and a naval logistics support ship to provide rear support.

2026-09-04 · assertive framing · South Korea pushes back on reports it is readying Hormuz deployment amid US pressure

🔮 South Korea’s military has confirmed that joint military drills with the US will be cut short, days after Donald Trump ordered the Pentagon to scale back the exercises.

2026-08-19 · assertive framing · US-led drills to end six days early, South Korea says, amid Trump push for Kim Jong-un talks

🔮 At their first summit, in August last year, the South Korean president, Lee Jae Myung, told Donald Trump: “If you, Mr President, become the peacemaker, then I will assist you as the pacemaker.”

2026-08-19 · mixed framing · In cutting joint drills, Trump has given South Korea’s president what he wants. So why is Seoul so uneasy?

🔮 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.

2026-08-18 · assertive framing · South Korea president calls for military independence in wake of Trump call to cut joint drills

Also by Raphael Rashid in Seoul

Outcry after Call of Duty maker uses real footage of deadly Seoul crowd crush in new video game

2026-10-29 · The Guardian

North Korea prepares to restart propaganda loudspeakers as ties sour with South

2026-10-22 · The Guardian

The night watch: the YouTubers who were guardians of a shark stuck in a South Korean canal

2026-10-21 · The Guardian

South Korea threatens legal action if fuel shipments to Russia found to have broken law

2026-10-08 · The Guardian

Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.

All 10 articles by Raphael Rashid in Seoul →

Topics

North Korea Pyongyang Seoul South Korea South Korean

Subjects

Trump PERSON · 9× Lee PERSON · 5× North Korea GPE · 4× Seoul GPE · 4× South Korea GPE · 4× Pyongyang GPE · 3× South Korean NORP · 2× South Koreans NORP · 2× Washington GPE · 2× Lee Jae Myung PERSON · 1×

Narrative

Trump has delivered on the drills, albeit in the blunt, discourteous fashion typical of the president: via social media, hours before the drills were to begin. Yet the move has inverted South Korea’s usual political lines, where the left-right divide is shaped more by attitudes toward North Korea – hawks v doves, confrontation v engagement – than by economic or social values.

framing: mixed · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-08-19

2026-08-19 · The Guardian

In cutting joint drills, Trump has given South Korea’s president what he wants. So why is Seoul so uneasy? · mixed framing

Claims (24 extracted, 6 hedged)

At their first summit, in August last year, the South Korean president, Lee Jae Myung, told Donald Trump: “If you, Mr President, become the peacemaker, then I will assist you as the pacemaker.” asserted

I → tell → pacemaker

The remark at the Oval Office captured the thrust of Lee’s approach to North Korea: dial down the military posturing and make repeated peace overtures to revive dialogue, even if they have been consistently rejected by Pyongyang largely over Seoul’s insistence on denuclearisation. asserted

they → capture → denuclearisation

Fast forward to this week, and Trump’s move to cut joint military exercises with South Korea echoes what Lee had himself floated, on several occasions, as a possible tool for drawing Pyongyang back to the table. asserted

Lee → fast → table

Lee’s broader message is that South Korea should take more responsibility for its own defence and reduce its reliance on others. asserted

Korea → take → others

On Tuesday, he used the moment to renew calls for wartime operational control of the military and progress on his country’s nuclear submarine programme. asserted

he → use → programme

divide → deliver → values

Reducing joint drills has long been advocated by some on the Korean left. asserted

Reducing → reduce → left

A rightwing US president imposing the policy on his centre-left South Korean counterpart lands awkwardly for both sides. asserted

president → impose → sides

While some see the reduction as potentially useful for diplomacy, the louder concern in Seoul is that Trump is weakening a key pillar of deterrence, and leaving South Korea with little say over decisions that directly affect its security. asserted

that → see → security

That may strain an alliance that has been the bedrock of security on the peninsula since the Korean war. uncertain

that → strain → war

The opposition conservative People Power party has called the decision a “security disaster” and warned of a return to “Korea passing”, a term used when Seoul feels sidelined in matters directly affecting it. asserted

Seoul → call → it

Conservative newspapers have been almost unanimous in calling the cut reckless. asserted

newspapers → call → cut

The influential Chosun Ilbo has gone further, blaming Lee’s government directly for inviting it. asserted

Ilbo → go → it

The left has not shared that sense of alarm. asserted

left → share → alarm

Hankyoreh, one of the country’s main progressive papers, raised no objection to the substance of Trump’s decision, only to how it was delivered: unilaterally and disrespectfully on social media, calling it “regrettable”. asserted

it → raise → it

Kyunghyang Shinmun took a more positive view, saying the cut could help create an atmosphere for dialogue with North Korea, so long as deterrence held. uncertain

deterrence → take → Korea

Reducing tensions with North Korea and creating space for dialogue are central to Lee’s agenda. asserted

Reducing → reduce → agenda

The ruling party has been quiet on the move, but openly welcoming Trump’s decision could put it at odds with a base that has generally viewed Trump with suspicion, if not hostility. uncertain

that → rule → suspicion

Aside from the domestic politics, the episode is likely to deepen doubts about Washington’s commitment to its allies, doubts that have been building for years since Trump’s first term, said Prof Jaechun Kim, who teaches international relations at Sogang University, in Seoul. asserted

who → deepen → Seoul

Trust, he argued, is the foundation of any alliance, and remarks like Trump’s reinforce the impression that the US’s obligations are increasingly viewed “through a highly transactional lens”, one that could shape how South Koreans judge US reliability long after Trump has left office. uncertain

Trump → argue → office

South Korea enjoys protection under the US nuclear umbrella, but public support for an independent deterrent among South Koreans and their neighbours has hovered around or above 70% in recent surveys. asserted

support → enjoy → surveys

The latest news may push that support higher still. uncertain

news → push → support

Kim said he expects Pyongyang to welcome any sign of friction within the alliance but doubts that it views improving relations with Washington as a priority, given the stronger backing it now enjoys from China and Russia compared with during Trump’s first term. asserted

it → say → term

“The irony,” he said, “is that [US] policies intended to reduce American burdens may ultimately strengthen calls for independent nuclear deterrents among US allies.” uncertain

policies → say → allies