Trump Cuts Back Joint Military Practice with South Korea, Points to Kim Relationship and Seoul's Iran Refusal

On 16 August 2026, President Trump told the Pentagon to scale back a large US-South Korea military practice involving 18,000 South Korean troops. Trump said his good relationship with North Korea's Kim Jong-Un and Seoul's refusal to join the US campaign against Iran guided the decision. The order came after North Korean missile tests and quick criticism from Senate Democrats.