US senators from both parties have jointly urged President Donald Trump to withdraw the reduction of South Korea-US joint military exercises.

According to the official website of US Republican Senator Thom Tillis on the 19th local time, Senator Tillis, along with Democratic Senator Mark Kelly, sent a letter to the US Department of Defense criticizing the scaling back of the exercises between South Korea and the US.

Addressed to President Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the two senators wrote in the letter, "We express our grave concerns regarding the decision to significantly scale back South Korea-US exercises," and urged, "We call for the continuation of exercises necessary to maintain the readiness of the South Korea-US alliance."

They pointed out that North Korea continues to advance its nuclear weapons, ballistic missiles, and conventional capabilities, while gaining combat experience by supporting Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which could make North Korea an even more dangerous threat to the US military and its allies.

They also emphasized that as the "anti-US solidarity" among North Korea, China, and Russia deepens, this is not the time to weaken the readiness of the US and its allies.

"Reducing the exercises sends the wrong signal to North Korea and adversarial nations," they added, expressing concern that "it could also expand room for North Korea to support Russia."

They further pointed out that decisions regarding US troop deployment and training should be made based on the security and military necessities of the US and its allies, rather than as political retaliation.

This reflects their perception that the reduction of the joint exercises was carried out as a retaliatory measure against the South Korean government.

While stating their support for a credible diplomatic strategy with North Korea, they stressed that diplomacy is strengthened—not weakened—when backed by a competent and prepared South Korea-US alliance. They requested the Department of Defense to submit a report detailing how the exercise cuts would affect South Korea-US interoperability, readiness, deterrence on the Korean Peninsula, and the operational capabilities of US Forces Korea.

The two senators had previously voiced public criticism immediately after the directive to reduce the exercises was issued.

Senator Tillis is a figure who, after falling out of favor with President Trump and having his bid for a third term blocked, does not hesitate to express opposition to President Trump's policies.

Senator Kelly, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, has a background of serving in the Navy, participating in the Gulf War, and working as a NASA astronaut.