Alarm in South Korea as Iran dispute with Trump shakes a 72-year alliance

What the report says

South Korean officials and commentators reacted with alarm after US President Donald Trump said on social media that he wanted the Pentagon to sharply reduce annual joint military exercises with South Korea. According to Al Jazeera, the announcement came just before the drills were due to begin and was followed by negotiations between US and South Korean defense officials that cut the exercise from 11 days to five and scaled back some field training.

The report says the move revived long-running concerns in Seoul about the reliability of US security commitments, which date back to the Korean War armistice. South Korean President Lee Jae Myung publicly backed the alliance while also stressing greater self-reliance. Foreign Minister Cho Hyun told lawmakers that neither the South Korean government nor US officials had been warned in advance. Public reaction in South Korea ranged from frustration to anger, while major newspapers warned that the alliance was under strain.

Al Jazeera also links the dispute to Trump’s criticism of South Korea’s stance on the US-Israel war on Iran. Trump complained that Seoul had not helped with a military operation related to Iran, and he suggested that ally expectations should be reciprocal. The article notes that South Korean politicians and analysts are now debating whether Seoul should adjust its policy, improve its own defenses, or even reconsider its broader dependence on Washington. The episode is presented as part of a wider reassessment of the US-South Korea relationship amid trade tensions, North Korea policy questions, and fears about future troop commitments.