South Korea says Iran war constraints led to drill cancellations

The United States canceled a joint marine landing drill with South Korea that had been scheduled for next month because of restrictions on the availability of U.S. forces due to the ongoing war with Iran, Reuters reported on Monday. The report cited a South Korean Marine Corps spokesperson as the source of the claim.

Multiple sources characterized the United States’ missile interceptor stores for a key missile defense system as running dangerously low, CNN reported earlier this month. The war in Iran depleted the U.S. military’s stockpiles of the key air defense system by nearly 80%, the CNN report added. Sources also told Reuters earlier this month that many of the military’s long-range precision missiles had been used up.

A spokesperson for the South Korean Marine Corps said that the two allied countries remained in conversation about resuming the drills at a later date, Reuters reported. The drills, known as Ulchi Freedom Shield, are a combined, interagency exercise that features live, field-based training in addition to virtual instruction.

President Donald Trump called the joint training exercises costly, adding that most of that bill was footed by the United States, in a statement last week. Trump said he also felt that the drills sent a hostile and inappropriate signal to North Korea’s Kim Jong Un. North Korea remained unthreatening and respectful throughout Trump’s presidency, he added. South Korea declined his request to aid in Iran’s denuclearization, the president said.