US President Donald Trump on Tuesday criticised South Korea for declining his request to assist the United States in its military operation against Iran, which prompted his decision to scale back military drills
with the close ally. He also questioned why Washington should continue spending billions of dollars to defend Seoul from North Korea.
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said he had called South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and asked whether Seoul would help with the Iran conflict.
“I called the president of South Korea. I said, ‘Would you help with Iran? If you would like, we don’t need help.’ He said, ‘No thanks,’” Trump said.
Trump said the response prompted him to question the US military commitment to South Korea.
“I said, ‘Well, wait a minute, we have 39,000 soldiers over there guarding you from Kim Jong Un, your next-door neighbour, and you’re not going to help us on a very easy military operation in Iran? That’s strange,’” he said.
Trump Questions US Defence Costs
Trump said the US did not need South Korea’s assistance but questioned the financial burden of defending allies that do not contribute to American military operations.
“We don’t need help with Iran. But if you’d like to give us a hand with Iran,” he said, recalling his request to Lee.
Trump also said Washington was spending “billions and billions of dollars” to protect South Korea and other allies, while pointing to the wider cost of US commitments to NATO.
Trump questioned the rationale behind continued US commitments, saying, “I said, ‘Well, why are we involved in helping you?'”
Why Trump Cut South Korea Drills?
Trump’s comments came a day after he ordered US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth to “substantially reduce” joint military exercises with South Korea.
In a Truth Social post, Trump said he was “not happy” that the US had agreed to take part in the drills, citing his “very good relationship” with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
He described the exercises as costly and “totally inappropriate and hostile” towards North Korea, which he said had been “unthreatening and respectful” towards his administration.
Trump said it was too late to cancel the exercises altogether but ordered them to be scaled back.
South Korea, meanwhile, said it was consulting Washington on practical and military contributions to efforts towards a ceasefire in Iran and restoring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
(With inputs from ANI)
