"Fury at Allies, South Korea a Scapegoat"... Security Vacuum 'Domino'

[Anchor]

Analyses suggest that the scaling down of the South Korea-U.S. joint military exercises is President Trump taking out his frustration because South Korea did not help with the war in Iran. As the war in Iran prolongs, a chain reaction of security vacuums is occurring not only on the Korean Peninsula, but also in various parts of East Asia and the Middle East.

Here is a report from reporter Yu Deok-gi.

[Reporter]

U.S. President Donald Trump even disclosed details of his conversation with South Korean President Lee Jae-myung while explaining the background behind the reduction of the South Korea-U.S. joint exercises.

[Donald Trump / U.S. President (local time on the 17th): When I said, "Will you help us a little?", "We don't necessarily need help with the Iran issue, but help us out if you want to," (President Lee Jae-myung) declined, saying he would "pass."] (Note: The date mentioned here corresponds to August 17, 2026.)

U.S. media outlets assessed that Trump is furious at allies that did not help with the war with Iran, and that South Korea is the most startling scapegoat.

Amid concerns over a security vacuum on the Korean Peninsula due to the drastic downsizing of the South Korea-U.S. joint drills, the USS George Washington, a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier that had been conducting operations to check China in the South China Sea, is now passing through the Strait of Singapore and heading toward the waters off Iran.

This is to relieve the USS Lincoln, whose sailors have even attempted suicide after spending nine months at sea.

Consequently, the Pacific region in East Asia is currently in a state of a strategic vacuum without a U.S. aircraft carrier.

If the war in Iran cannot be brought to an end, the vacuum of U.S. carrier strike forces in East Asia will inevitably be prolonged, leaving countries such as Taiwan, Japan, and the Philippines with no choice but to doubt U.S. security commitments amid China's expanding influence.

The situation in the Middle East is even more severe.

While about 40,000 U.S. service members have been stationed across some 20 bases including Bahrain, over 200 U.S. military facilities have been destroyed by Iranian missile and drone attacks. It is reported that instead of returning troops, the U.S. military is considering redeploying them further west of the Persian Gulf.

A blow to the security of Gulf nations that have relied on the U.S. military is unavoidable, and Saudi Arabia has signed mutual defense agreements with Turkey and Pakistan to establish a collective security system without the United States.

The fruitless war in Iran is shaking the global security strategy of the United States like falling dominoes amid mistrust among allies.

(Video Editing: Park Choon-bae, Design: Park Tae-young, Kang Yoon-jung)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.