# Alarm in South Korea as Iran dispute with Trump shakes 72-year alliance

https://mins.news/en/item/26848

- Al Jazeera, 2026-08-20 01:56 UTC
- World
- Original: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/8/20/alarm-in-south-korea-as-iran-dispute-with-trump-shakes-a-72-year-alliance?traffic_source=rss

> Donald Trump’s order to substantially reduce US-South Korea military drills has rattled Seoul, reviving doubts about Washington’s security guarantee and prompting calls to reconsider South Korea’s position on the US-Israel war on Iran. The exercise was shortened from 11 days to five, while President Lee Jae Myung stressed the alliance remained essential and called for stronger self-reliant defence capabilities.

## Stories

- [US–North Korea Relations and North Korea Policy](https://mins.news/en/topic/us-north-korea-relations) — Markdown: https://mins.news/en/topic/us-north-korea-relations.md

## Related coverage

- [Trump’s cut to joint drills gives South Korea’s president what he wanted. So why is Seoul uneasy?](https://mins.news/en/item/25770) — The Guardian, 2026-08-19
- [South Korea’s Lee calls for stronger self-defence as US weighs scaling back joint drills](https://mins.news/en/video/25184) — CNA, 2026-08-18
- [Trump seeks cuts to US-South Korea drills, reviving earlier objections](https://mins.news/en/item/23873) — Reuters, 2026-08-17
