Washington, DC [US], August 20 (ANI): US President Donald Trump has expressed dissatisfaction with South Korea over its unwillingness to assist Washington in securing the Strait of Hormuz, whilst questioning
the conduct of large-scale joint military manoeuvres targeted at North Korea, a development underscoring friction over burden-sharing and regional security dynamics. Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump highlighted his displeasure regarding Seoul’s response when approached for maritime security assistance in the crucial energy passageway. “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 per cent of their oil from the Hormuz Strait,” Trump said. Recounting his exchange with South Korean officials, he added, “I said, ‘Would you like to help us?’ He said, no, thank you. I said that’s nice, please, thank you.” The President directly connected Seoul’s refusal regarding the Hormuz deployment to his growing reservations about conducting major military drills on the Korean Peninsula. He argued that carrying out such exercises was counterproductive at a time when he is attempting to maintain functional diplomatic communication with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. “I felt that to do a massive, we were doing a massive war exercise. I thought that was very insulting to somebody that frankly has been, during my term at least, very well-behaved,” Trump stated. When asked if achieving complete denuclearisation remains his core objective in seeking renewed engagements with Pyongyang, Trump bypassed giving a direct response. “Well, I don’t want to talk about that, but I do have a good relationship with Kim Jong-un, as you know, you’ve seen,” he said. Contrasting his personal rapport with Kim against the diplomatic records of previous American administrations, Trump maintained that his direct engagement has enhanced regional security for Washington and its Asian partners. “He didn’t like Biden, he didn’t like Obama, he didn’t like anybody, but he likes me, and I like, you know, I just got along with him very good,” Trump said. “We had great meetings, we speak.” “And I think our nation and I think other nations, frankly, whether it’s Japan or South Korea, they’re a lot safer if I’m President than if somebody else is President,” he added. Reiterating his strong stance against allied war games that Pyongyang views as preparations for conflict, Trump remarked, “Now, I didn’t like the fact that we’re doing these massive military exercises really against North Korea. It was, you know, an exercise against North Korea.” He asserted that his personal relationship with the North Korean leader mitigates immediate security threats, though he provided no specific roadmap on ongoing diplomatic discussions or formal negotiating timelines. “When I’m friendly with him, when we have, I don’t see anything happening for certainly two and a half years, it’s not going to happen with me, but I don’t see anything happening,” Trump said. The US President’s observations follow his recent assessment that North Korea maintains an inventory of roughly 57 nuclear weapons and continues to expand its nuclear capabilities, though he did not outline specific intelligence details supporting the warhead count during the briefing. (ANI)
