Conflict · Ulchi Freedom ShieldTrump Orders Korea War Drills Slashed From 11 Days to 5Aired August 19, 2026 at 4:55 PM UTCWritten September 7, 2026 at 9:22 PM UTCRead the write-upThis storyTranscript · LOADING0:00The major US-South Korea [music]0:01exercise Ulchi Freedom Shield that began0:03August 17th has been cut from an 11-day0:06run through August 27th to about [music]0:085 days ending August 21st on direct0:10presidential orders. At 5:00 p.m. on0:12August 16th, President Donald Trump0:14instructed [music] Secretary of War Pete0:16Hegseth to substantially reduce the0:18joint drills saying it was too late to0:19cancel altogether0:20>> [music]0:21>> and that the exercises are costly with0:22much of the cost paid by the United0:24States and send an inappropriate and0:26hostile signal to an unthreatening and0:27respectful [music] North Korea given his0:29relationship with Kim Jong-un. The0:31original schedule ran August 17th0:33through 27th, [music] 10 to 11 days of0:35command post and field training0:37involving about 18,000 South [music]0:38Korean personnel. The revised plan cuts0:41about 6 days ending August 21st with the0:44second phase of live fire and0:45counterattack [music] scenarios canceled0:46or converted to simulations. The cut0:49lands on an alliance dating to the 19500:51Korean War under the mutual defense0:53treaty and the US nuclear umbrella with0:56about [music] 28,500 US troops stationed0:59in South Korea as a tripwire force.1:01Trump cited about 39,000. [music]1:04The exercise is designed to sharpen1:06readiness from drones to cyberattacks1:08against North Korea. Competing1:09explanations frame the move. One links1:12it to displeasure with Seoul, the view1:14Washington spends too much to protect1:16South Korea and provide equipment,1:17[music] a preference to negotiate1:19directly with China rather than through1:20alliances, and a grudge that South Korea1:23and others did not support the war in1:25Iran or help reopen the Strait of1:26Hormuz.1:27>> [music]1:27>> The other from Seoul initially said the1:30drills would proceed as planned. Said1:32the last call with Trump was in May and1:34later said the characterization that1:36Seoul was asked to join denuclearization1:37of Iran and answered no thanks was not1:40consistent with [music] the facts while1:41noting interest in Iran1:42denuclearization, ceasefire, and freedom1:44of navigation. Before the launches, Kim1:47denounced [music] the drills as1:48provocative preparation for aggressive1:49war. Trump said on August 17th he had1:52heard from Kim and expects [music] a1:53future interaction of unclear form later1:55citing 57 very powerful North Korean1:58weapons.1:59>> [music]1:59>> The Pentagon said the adjustments2:00preserve essential readiness with no2:02degradation to training objectives.2:03[music] North Korea is estimated to hold2:0550 to 60 assembled warheads with fissile2:08material for about 30 more, [music]2:10according to the SIPRI 2026 yearbook.2:12Trump cited 57. South Korea contributes2:15about 1.52 trillion won in 2026, [music]2:19about 1.1 to 1.2 billion dollars under2:21the special measures agreement covering2:23[music] 2026 through 2030 for hosting US2:26forces, not a full exercise cost2:28breakdown. [music]2:29What substantially reduce means beyond2:31this cycle remains undefined. No2:33detailed Pentagon guidance for future2:35exercises [music]2:36has been published, and no channel or2:38content has been confirmed for the2:40claimed outreach from Kim, leaving2:41whether deterrence is preserved, whether2:43Seoul shifts toward greater2:44self-reliance,2:45>> [music]2:45>> and whether the alliance faces a deeper2:47credibility gap as the immediate2:48unresolved consequences for troops,2:50civilians, and regional stability.2:53Like and follow for more stories that2:54matter.Explore with HeyDexThe shortThe short ↗