South Korea says US cancelled upcoming joint marine exercises over Iran war

Cancellation follows Donald Trump’s surprise order last week to scale back a separate annual joint military exercise.South Korea says the United States has cancelled a large joint amphibious landing exercise scheduled for next month due to constraints on force availability caused by the US-Israel war on Iran.“The US Marine Corps formally notified our forces in June that its ability to deploy forces during this year’s Ssangyong exercise would be constrained due to the situation in the Middle East,” Han Seung-jeon, a spokesman for the South Korean Marine Corps, told reporters at a news briefing on Monday.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3US threatens toughest sanctions yet against Iran: What we knowlist 2 of 3Dutch public broadcaster to boycott ‘no longer’ neutral Eurovisionlist 3 of 3India used pellets, grenades on Gen Z protests: What Amnesty report revealsend of listThe biennial Ssangyong drills involve marine forces from South Korea and the US and are designed to strengthen combined operations, typically involving warships, aircraft and ground forces rehearsing amphibious landings.Seoul and Washington were continuing consultations on resuming the amphibious exercise, the spokesman said, without giving details.There was no immediate comment from the Pentagon.The announcement follows US President Donald Trump’s surprise order last week 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 war on Iran.The annual Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises were cut from 11 days to five.Trump has also sought to revive the relationship he developed with North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un during his first term.He wrote on his Truth Social platform last week that the Ulchi Freedom Shield drills sent “a signal that was totally inappropriate and hostile, to a Country that, as long as Donald J. Trump has been President, has been unthreatening and respectful”.