US does not notify South Korea in advance about scaling back exercises — MFA

SEOUL, August 19. /TASS/. The United States did not notify the Republic of Korea in advance of plans to scale back military exercises, South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said.

"Neither our government nor representatives of the US government knew in advance what [US] President [Donald] Trump said on Truth Social," he said.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) of the Republic of Korea announced Wednesday that the Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises would end ahead of schedule, on August 21. The drill was scheduled to take place from August 17 to 27. South Korea had planned to involve 18,000 personnel in it.

On August 16, Trump highlighted his very good relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and expressed dissatisfaction with the fact that the United States had long ago agreed to participate in joint military exercises with the Republic of Korea.