Kim-praising Trump asks South Korea, ‘Why are we helping you?’ in tiff over Iran aid

Kim-praising Trump asks South Korea, ‘Why are we helping you?’ in tiff over Iran aid President reduces seven-decade U.S. relationship with South Korea to protection racket as he rants about Seoul not joining his war against Iran - Bookmark - CommentsGo to comments President Donald Trump on Monday complained that the South Korean government was not paying the United States what he appeared to describe as protection money in exchange for upholding America’s 70-year-old treaty commitment as he told reporters that he’d been in contact with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un during an appearance in the Oval Office. Speaking during a question-and-answer session as he met with a teenage California lifeguard who recently saved a 10-year-old boy from drowning in rough waves, the president said he’d had a “very positive” communication with Kim, with whom he met three times during his first term. Asked about criticisms over his decision to cancel military exercises with Seoul as a gesture towards Kim and whether it sent a signal that he favors enemies over America’s allies, Trump groused that the South Korean government had not been forking over billions in dollars that he had extorted from the South during his first term as a condition of maintaining the massive American military presence there. “South Korea has been protected by us for many, many years, and during my first term, they agreed to pay close to $3 billion a year for protection ... And I asked them to do that at my request. I said they weren't happy about it, but they agreed. I asked for $10 billion, and they were very unhappy. But we agreed for a short term there would be $3 billion, and next year would go up, and the next year would go up so they start paying for their protection,” he said. Trump then repeated his oft-told lie about the 2020 election — which he lost to Joe Biden — having been “rigged,” and complained that Biden had not followed through on collecting the extorted billions from South Korea and instead upheld the longstanding mutual defense relationship between the two countries that was formalized in a 1953 treaty. He also complained about Seoul purportedly refusing to join his war against Iran and suggested that the South’s refusal to participate meant he would not honor American treaty commitments going forward. “When I called recently the president of South Korea .... I said, ‘Would you like to give us a little hand? We don't need help with Iran, but if you'd like, give us a hand with Iran.’ He said ‘no thanks,’ and I said, ‘Wait a minute. We have 39,000 soldiers over there guarding you from Kim Jong Un, your next-door neighbor, and you're not going to help us on a very easy military operation in Iran. That's strange,’” Trump said. “I say, well, why are we involved in helping you? “ “I want to help them, but you know, when you ask somebody, would you like to give us a hand, and they say no thanks, and then we're guarding them from a country and paying ourselves billions of dollars, costing us billions and billions of dollars to protect not only them, but other countries,” he added. The president’s outburst came hours after he took to Truth Social to declare that the U.S. was walking out on long-scheduled joint exercises with the South just before they were set to begin, citing his “very good” relationship with the 42-year-old North Korean dictator. While he conceded that it was too late to cancel the exercises, known as Ulchi Freedom Shield, he said he was directing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to “substantially reduce” the joint drills. “Based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong Un, of North Korea, I am not happy with the fact that the United States has, long ago, agreed to participate in Joint Military Exercises with South Korea,” he said. “These exercises are not only costly, with much of these costs paid for by the United States of America (as usual!), but 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 South Korean defense ministry said in response that it would proceed as “previously notified and scheduled” with the joint exercises. Trump similarly suspended major US-South Korean military exercises during his first term following the first of three summits with Kim in 2018. The move is the latest example of the president appearing to turn against an ally in favour of a leader that previous administrations have cast as an adversary. It comes as North Korea has repeatedly warned against the exercises, launching test missiles and issuing warnings in the wake of the drills. On Friday, the Kim regime threatened unspecified stern steps against the US and South Korea, describing their military drills as a "rehearsal for an aggressive war" that are triggering greater instability in the region. Pyongyang has been pushing hard to enlarge its nuclear and missile arsenals since Kim’s high-stakes diplomacy with Trump collapsed in 2019. Experts say Kim likely believes a bigger weapons arsenal would increase his chances of gaining more concessions from the US in future negotiations. Join our commenting forum Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies Comments