South Korea president calls for military independence in wake of Trump call to cut joint drills

Source: www.theguardian.com · Section: headlines · Bias: Center-Left · Published: Tue, 18 Aug 2026 05:50:33 GMT

Lee Jae Myung reiterates desire for full command back in Seoul’s hands after Donald Trump cuts joint exercises, citing warm ties with Kim Jong-un‘Inane, haphazard decision’ by Trump to gut South Korea allianceSouth Korea’s president ⁠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 after Donald Trump’s order to cut joint drills.On Sunday night, Trump instructed the Pentagon to “substantially reduce” this week’s joint military exercises with South Korea, saying the nuclear-armed North “has been unthreatening and respectful” and that the US president had a “very good relationship with Kim Jong-un”. Continue reading...

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The same story across the political spectrum (15 sources)

Left: Trump Burns Allies Over Iran. South Korea and Oman Are Next. — www.motherjones.com
Center-Left: Trump defends his move to cut back U.S.-South Korea military exercises — www.washingtonpost.com
Center-Right: Trump tells Hegseth to cut back U.S.-South Korea drills — www.axios.com
Center: Mark Kelly: Trump decision to reduce joint military exercises with South Korea 'shortsighted and a mistake' — thehill.com
Center-Right: Trump explains reduced joint drills with South Korea — thehill.com
Center: Trump orders U . S . scale back on military drills with South Korea , citing good relationship with North Korea Kim Jong Un — theprovince.com
Right: Trump orders military to ‘substantially reduce’ joint exercises with South Korea — www.nbcnews.com
Right: WSJ torches Trump's 'act of appeasement' toward dictator: 'The world is wondering' — www.rawstory.com
Right: Trump 'completely spiraling' as war reaches point where 'no end in sight': CNN — www.rawstory.com
Right: Trump rips allies Oman, South Korea amid escalating tensions with Iran — thehill.com

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