Trump orders Pentagon to scale back joint exercises with South Korea

Source: AP

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump ordered the Pentagon on Sunday to scale back planned joint military exercises with South Korea after the Republican president said it declined to help denuclearize Iran.

Trump said in a social media post that the exercises slated to begin this week are costly and “send a signal that is totally inappropriate and hostile” to North Korea, which he said “has been unthreatening and respectful” while Trump has been in the White House.

“Therefore, and based on the fact that it is too late to cancel, I have instructed Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, to substantially reduce the Joint Military Exercises!” Trump wrote. Trump added that he recently asked South Korea’s president to join the U.S. in its efforts to denuclearize Iran, “and they said, ‘No thanks!’”

The 11 days of exercises involving 18,000 South Korean soldiers were designed to beef up readiness against North Korean threats. North Korea on Friday threatened unspecified stern steps against the U.S. and South Korea, describing their military drills as a “a rehearsal for an aggressive war” that are triggering greater instability in the region.

Trump Threatens to Bomb Oman If It Gets in Way of US, Report Says

Source: Bloomberg

President Donald Trump threatened to bomb Oman if the country gets in the way of the US blockade of Iranian ships in the Strait of Hormuz, Fox News reported.

In a phone interview, Trump told the network that if “Oman gets in the way we’ll bomb the s—- out of them.” He also said that the blockade is putting pressure on Iran and that he has no timeline for resolving the conflict, declaring he isn’t in a hurry.

The war with Iran has dragged on for nearly six months with no resolution in sight. Talks between the US and Iran aimed at bringing about a lasting peace have stalled and intermittent clashes keep flaring up, disrupting the flow of oil and other key commodities through the crucial Strait of Hormuz.

U.S. and Iran Blow Through Deadline to Agree to a Broad Deal to End War

Source: New York Times

Aug. 17, 2026, 12:01 a.m. ET

The United States and Iran on Monday missed their 60-day deadline to reach a deal to curtail Iran’s nuclear program under the terms of the cease-fire they agreed to in June, underlining the breakdown of a truce that President Trump promised would end the war.

Mr. Trump had announced the so-called memorandum of understanding between the two countries with great fanfare two months ago. But the short-lived agreement failed to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran effectively blockaded after Israel and the United States attacked in late February, or end a conflict that has entered its sixth month.

The expiration of deadline is largely symbolic, as both Mr. Trump and Iran’s leaders have said in recent weeks that the deal is basically dead. But the milestone nonetheless shows how Mr. Trump has struggled to achieve his war aims — like forcing Iran to curtail its nuclear ambitions — and how emboldened the Iranian government feels, with the two countries at risk of further military conflict.

There have been no publicly reported U.S. strikes on Iranian targets since late July. But the United States and Iran appear to be gearing up for a protracted campaign of economic attrition that could easily tip over into renewed warfare, analysts said. Iran is wielding its control of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for oil and gas shipping, to choke global energy markets, raising pressure on Mr. Trump to reach a deal.