Seoul: A Pentagon official said Monday that the U.S. Defense Department is "actively" working on executing U.S. President Donald Trump's directive on South Korea-U.S. military exercises, a day after Trump said he has ordered the Pentagon to "substantially" reduce the allies' drills.
According to Yonhap News Agency, in a social media post, Trump stated he has instructed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to scale back the joint military exercises as a conciliatory gesture toward North Korea. This announcement coincided with the commencement of the annual Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) exercise in South Korea by Seoul and Washington.
"The Department of War is actively working on executing the Commander-in-Chief's directive," an official from the department said in an "updated" statement regarding UFS and other bilateral exercises with South Korea. Earlier, the Pentagon had stated there were no changes to announce concerning UFS, and directed questions regarding Trump's comments or broader policy directions to the White House.
The updated statement has fueled speculation about the potential reduction of the allied drills, despite concerns over how such a move might impact efforts to bolster deterrence against North Korea's advancing nuclear and missile threats. These threats have been exacerbated by increased cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow.
The ongoing UFS exercise, which began on Monday (Seoul time), is scheduled to continue through August 27. It aims to strengthen the allies' capabilities against potential North Korean aggression and to test Seoul's ability to lead combined forces, as part of efforts to transfer wartime operational control from the U.S. to South Korea.
The White House has not provided immediate responses to inquiries regarding Trump's directive. In a Truth Social post on Sunday, Trump announced his directive, criticizing the drills as "costly" and claiming they send a "totally inappropriate and hostile" signal to the North.