Asian allies call U.S.-South Korea security ties ‘critical’ as Trump praises Kim
Japan has reaffirmed the necessity of security cooperation with the U.S. and South Korea following President Trump's decision to scale back military drills. Trump's recent praise for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has caused concern among regional allies regarding the future of U.S. security commitments.
Why it matters
Shifts in U.S. foreign policy toward North Korea directly impact the security architecture of the Indo-Pacific region.
Japan underlined on Tuesday (August 18, 2026) that security cooperation with the United States and South Korea was "critical" for the region's stability, after U.S. President Donald Trump alarmed allies by scaling back military drills with Seoul while hailing his ties with Pyongyang.
Mr. Trump abruptly announced on Sunday that he had ordered the Pentagon to scale back "inappropriate and hostile" military drills with South Korea.
The following day, he insisted he was making the situation "much safer" through his ties with the North's Kim Jong Un, whom he met three times in his first term but has yet to encounter since his return to the White House.
While praising the leader of nuclear-armed North Korea, he rebuked key ally Seoul for failing to help Washington fight Iran — a war Mr. Trump says is aimed at stopping Tehran from getting an atomic bomb.
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