US and S Korea cut drills short after Trump comments

Annual war games between South Korea and the US are to end about a week earlier than planned, both countries said yesterday, after US President Donald Trump ordered the “inappropriate and hostile” drills scaled back.Trump on Sunday said that he had told the Pentagon to curtail the annual Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) exercises — a day before they started — citing his “good relationship” with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.Pyongyang’s state media yesterday called the drills a “most immediate and open threat,” without mentioning Trump’s order. South Korea soldiers take part in a drill as a part of the Ulchi Freedom Shield military exercises in Seoul yesterday. Photo: AP Hours later, Seoul’s military said the drills would wrap up tomorrow, not on Friday next week as originally planned.“We have