President Lee Jae-myung and US President Donald Trump speak during an official welcome dinner hosted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his wife at the presidential palace in Ankara, Turkey, on July 7. [Yonhap]
President Lee Jae-myung and US President Donald Trump speak during an official welcome dinner hosted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his wife at the presidential palace in Ankara, Turkey, on July 7. [Yonhap]

Donald Trump's order to scale back joint US-South Korea military exercises drew criticism from US media and opposition lawmakers.

Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona said on social media Sunday that "gutting combined exercises is a shortsighted mistake," according to AP.

Kelly is a Navy pilot veteran who flew 39 combat missions, including during the Gulf War.

US media raised the possibility that Trump's order was part of a broader pressure campaign targeting South Korea, a key US ally.

Bloomberg reported that the policy shift reflected frustration that South Korea had not provided greater support during the Iran war.

Some analysts also suggested the move may be linked to a lack of progress on a $200 billion investment package that South Korea agreed to commit to the United States as part of tariff negotiations.

Adam Parer, a senior analyst at Bloomberg Economics who served as director for Korea and Mongolia on the National Security Council under both the Trump and Biden administrations, said the order "could reflect frustration with the South Korean government — whether it's the lack of progress on the investment commitment or its refusal to support the war in Iran."

AP described Trump's order as "the latest example of him appearing to side with adversarial leaders while pushing back against allies."

The wire service also noted that the Trump administration had made a sharp reversal from the stance it had taken toward South Korea in recent months.

As recently as last May, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth praised South Korea's pledge to increase defense spending and its leadership on Korean Peninsula security after meeting with Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-baek.

Meanwhile, analysts expressed doubt that scaling back the joint exercises would bring North Korea back to the negotiating table.

Parer said Kim Jong-un "has secured a stronger position with Russian backing and has shown little interest in engaging in dialogue so far."


joze@heraldcorp.com