‘A mistake’: Political analyst on Trump scaling back US-South Korea military <a href="https://healthylife7.com/what-are-exercise-snacks-the-new-wellness-trend-for-people-who-hate-going-to-the-gym/” title=”What Are Exercise Snacks? The New Wellness Trend for People Who Hate Going to the Gym”>exercises
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SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA – AUGUST 19: South Korean soldiers participate in an anti-terrorism exercise, linked to the ongoing joint military drills known as Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) at Lotte Hotel World on August 19, 2026 in Seoul, South Korea. The exercise serves as a platform for the South Korean government to prepare for potential emergencies on the Korean Peninsula, with some 580,000 officials and military from about 4,000 city, county and ward governments, public institutions and others across the nation participating. (Photo by Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON (TNND) —Tensions spiked on the Korean Peninsula after North Korea fired a barrage of roughly 10 short-range ballistic missiles toward the sea, raising fresh questions about diplomacy and the strength of the U.S.-South Korea alliance
Chang argued that scaling back the exercises was “a mistake,” pointing to recent tensions along the border. (TNND)
The launches came hours after President Donald Trump ordered a major scale-back of U.S.-South Korea joint military drills, a move described as an effort to revive diplomacy with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Trump also said he would meet with the leader later this year
Author and political analyst Gordon Chang told The National News Desk he viewed the missile launches as a direct rebuke of Trump’s outreach.
“I see this as a rejection of President Trump’s statements, an attempt to intimidate the president of the United States,” Chang said
Chang argued thatscaling back the exercises was “a mistake,” pointing to recent tensions along the border
“Just a few days before that, we learned that North Korean troops crossed over the military demarcation line into South Korean territory.” Chang said that incident was part of “a series of provocations in the demilitarized zone.”
Trump, speaking at the White House, also criticized South Korea over what he described as its unwillingness to help with the situation in the Strait of Hormuz
“I was not happy when South Korea said, no, they’re not interested in helping us with the Hormuz Strait. And yet they get 60% of their oil from the Hormuz Strait,” Trump said. “I said, would you like to help us? He said, no thank you. I said, I and I said, please, thank you. He made us a lot of money. I didn’t like that.”
Chang said strain in the alliance existed even before Trump decided to scale back the drills
He criticized South Korea’s president, saying, “Lee Jae Myung, the president of South Korea, is pro-China, pro-North Korea and deeply anti-U.S.”
Chang added, “We don’t know where he’s taking South Korea, but one of those places is a communist state. I’m not saying that’s going to happen, but that’s the direction of the president of South Korea.”
Chang said the period ahead could be difficult, comparing the current situation to past eras under left-leaning South Korean leaders
“We’ve weathered leftist, South Korean presidents before, three of them. But this fourth one, Eugene Mong, is so much more ruthless and determined than the previous three,” he said
The developments also come amid uncertainty over the size of North Korea’s nuclear arsenal. Trump said North Korea has “57 very powerful and nuclear weapons,” while South Korea’s defense minister has estimated the number at between 80 and 120
Chang said Trump’s specific figure may have been intended as a pressure tactic
“When President Trump was very clear about the number 57, what he was trying to do was to intimidate Kim Jong Un, I believe, because he was saying, look, although North Korea is sort of a closed society, we know exactly what you have,” Chang said. “That’s your most important secret.”
Chang said the impact could depend on whether Trump’s number is accurate. “Now, if President Trump is right, Kim Jong Un will be intimidated. But if President Trump is wrong, I think it will embolden the North Koreans,” he said
As for the competing estimates, Chang said, “I think probably President Trump is right. But this is something that we’re going to learn only later, if at all.”
