WASHINGTON — The Pentagon said Monday that it had agreed with South Korea to cancel an important military exercise that was scheduled for later this summer, in keeping with President Donald Trump’s pledge to halt war games while talks are under way with North Korea.
Thousands of American and South Korean troops were expected to participate in the exercise, the American portion of which is called Freedom Guardian. Trump surprised the Pentagon and other administration aides by announcing after his historic summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un last week that he wanted to halt major maneuvers between the U.S. and South Korea, calling them expensive and provocative.
“Consistent with President Trump’s commitment and in concert with our Republic of Korea ally, the United States military has suspended all planning for this August’s defensive ‘wargame,’ ” Pentagon chief spokeswoman Dana White said in a statement Monday. “We are still coordinating additional actions. No decisions on subsequent wargames have been made,” she said.
Trump had long pondered the prospect of halting such exercises after the suggestion was first made to him last summer by Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to U.S. officials. Both Russia and China are on the record as saying they would like the U.S. to freeze exercises, and North Korea has long complained about the maneuvers, calling them proof of U.S. “ambition for military confrontation” against North Korea in a commentary on May 29.
An expanded version of this report appears on WSJ.com.[1]
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