By JULIE MASSON and YOOJIN LEE STARS AND STRIPES
The U.S. and South Korean militaries will end their large-scale summer exercise Friday — less than halfway through its planned 11-day run — after President Donald Trump called for a substantial reduction in joint drills on the Korean Peninsula.
Ulchi Freedom Shield, which began Monday and was slated to continue through Aug. 27, will instead conclude after five days, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff announced Wednesday.
The change follows a Sunday Truth Social post in which Trump called for the allies to “substantially reduce” their military exercises, citing their cost and his relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
“Following the U.S.’s suggestion,” South Korea adjusted the duration and scale of Ulchi Freedom Shield, the Joint Chiefs said in a news release
Soldiers assigned to the 304th Expeditionary Signal Battalion-Enhanced install and inspect communications equipment in support of Ulchi Freedom Shield at CP Tango, South Korea, Aug. 11, 2026. (Shin Haegyeom/U.S Army)
The allies are still coordinating details of a reduced slate of combined field training drills, according to the release
“Moving forward, South Korea and the U.S. will discuss various measures to achieve [Ulchi Freedom Shield] exercise goals and establish a combined defense posture,” the Joint Chiefs said.
Hours after the Joint Chiefs’ statement about the scaling back of drills, Kim’s powerful sister Kim Yo Jong responded Wednesday
“We think it’s not worth making comments on that and we have no interest in it at all,” Kim Yo Jong said in a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency, North Korea’s state news. “The provocative, aggressive nature of the drills won’t change even though their duration and size were reduced.”
Her statements dampened hopes for a resumption of diplomacy between Kim Jong Un and Trump
Kim Yo Jong also denied that there were any communications between Trump and Kim Earlier pressed by reporters on whether he had a conversation with Kim Jong Un, Trump said that Kim has responded to his request for a conversation
Ulchi Freedom Shield is one of two major exercises carried out annually by the allies and is intended to test their ability to respond jointly to a conflict on the peninsula.
Based on direction from Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the U.S. military has substantially reduced the exercise “while continuing training that enhances tactical capability,” the Pentagon said in an unsigned email Tuesday evening in Virginia.
“Associated live-training events have been reduced, with certain events canceled or converted to simulations,” the message said. “These adjustments preserve essential readiness and training objectives. There will be no degradation to U.S. training objectives.”
Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday that South Korean President Lee Jae Myung recently refused his request to assist Washington in the war with Iran
Trump also questioned the cost of the U.S. military presence on the peninsula and said he considered the exercises an “inappropriate and hostile” signal toward North Korea
Trump’s decision was not prompted by Lee’s refusal to cooperate with the U.S., Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back said Wednesday at a government conference in Seoul
Ahn did not provide details on Trump’s decision-making but confirmed the order to reduce the exercise was made “unilaterally,” according to video of the session posted online by KNN News
Soldiers assigned to the 304th Expeditionary Signal Battalion-Enhanced install and inspect communications equipment in support of Ulchi Freedom Shield at CP Tango, South Korea, Aug. 11, 2026. (Shin Haegyeom/U.S Army)
North Korea denounced the exercise Wednesday, saying the drills are once again pushing tensions on the peninsula to the “threshold of a war,” according to the state-run Korean Central News Agency.
The report said Pyongyang will exercise its right to self-defense and vowed to “completely neutralize the enemies’ military threat” until they abandon their attempts to disrupt the power balance in the Pacific region.
Trump announced Monday that North Korea’s leader had responded to his request for dialogue and was “very positive.” The president provided no further details
Trump is pushing his aides to arrange a meeting with Kim as early as this fall to persuade the North Korean leader to denuclearize, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday, citing unnamed U.S. officials
It added that Trump is seeking an in-person meeting with Kim during the U.S. leader’s anticipated trip to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, or APEC, intergovernmental forum in Shenzhen, China
