The United States has canceled a joint amphibious landing drill scheduled for next month with South Korea, citing constraints on the availability of US forces due to the war in Iran, Seoul’s Marine Corps says.
The US Marine Corps formally notified its South Korean counterpart in June that force availability would be constrained for the division-level exercise, known as Ssangyong, a South Korean Marine Corps spokesperson tells a press briefing.
The allies remain in close consultations on resuming the drills, the spokesperson says.
The cancellation follows US President Donald Trump’s surprise order earlier this month to scale back a separate annual joint military exercise that ended last Friday, citing the cost and Seoul’s refusal to take part in the Iran war.
Trump also wrote on his Truth Social platform that the Ulchi Freedom Shield drills sent “a signal that was totally inappropriate and hostile,” to North Korea, which he said “has been unthreatening and respectful.”
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