‘Unforced error’: Retired Air Force colonel slams Trump’s South Korea military drill cuts

WASHINGTON, DC: Retired Air Force Colonel Cedric Leighton didn’t hide his frustration with President Donald Trump’s decision to scale back joint military exercises with South Korea.

He called it an “unforced error” that gives North Korea a leg up while putting America’s alliance with South Korea in jeopardy. The partnership is one of the bedrocks of US security in the Pacific.

Leighton, who spent 26 years in the Air Force before becoming CNN’s chief military analyst, weighed in after Trump ordered the reduction. The president had just told Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to scale back the Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises, which were scheduled to begin Monday, August 17. 

Cedric Leighton warns Trump drills cut could hurt Seoul alliance

Leighton said the decision would have immediate consequences for the alliance between Washington and Seoul, which underpins American security commitments across the broader Pacific region.

“This particular situation, what you’re seeing is the North Koreans are getting an advantage, really, an unforced error on our part,” Leighton said.

“It’s going to damage the relationship we have with the South Koreans, and that’s not a good thing.”

He said the broader strategic implications extended well beyond the Korean Peninsula, warning of "some serious impacts on our relationships in the Pacific realm."

A moment earlier, Leighton said it could have “some serious impacts on our relationships in the Pacific realm,” and he criticized the president for saying earlier that the US was going to pay for the entire operation; Leighton said that was “absolutely false.”

He continued, saying the exercises were “critical” for the joint defense of South Korea and Japan, as well as the United States.

Trump calls South Korea drills ‘hostile,’ cites Kim relationship

Donald Trump recently said he was scaling back joint US military drills with South Korea aimed at deterring North Korea, despite military officials from both countries warning that Kim Jong-un’s regime was learning new battlefield tactics from the Ukraine war.

The drills under Ulchi Freedom Shield, one of two major annual exercises held by South Korea and the US, start on Monday and run until August 27.

However, on Sunday evening, the US president said he was “not happy” with US participation “based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong-un”.

He added that they were costly and “send a signal that is totally inappropriate and hostile, to a country that, as long as Donald J Trump has been president, has been unthreatening and respectful”.

The timing of the order drew backlash, as US and South Korean military officials had publicly announced last week that this year’s Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises would focus on lessons learned from North Korean troops’ growing battlefield experience in Ukraine, including new drone tactics, GPS disruption, and cyberattack scenarios.

Pyongyang has for some time been trying to send military aid to Moscow, with more than 14,000 North Korean soldiers having fought alongside Russian troops in the Kursk region.

South Korea's Defense Ministry said Monday that the exercises would proceed as planned.