North Korea's Kim Yo Jong accused South Korean President Lee Jae‑myung of making "double‑dealing remarks" after Lee praised the U.S. decision to scale back joint military drills as a step toward dialogue. The exercises were cut short after former President Donald Trump ordered a significant reduction in U.S. participation and said he sought to revive diplomacy with Kim Jong Un. Kim Yo Jong denied knowledge of recent communications between her brother and Trump and said U.S. hostility toward Pyongyang remains unchanged. Russia welcomed the drill reductions, saying they lower the risk of regional destabilisation.
Kim Yo Jong Calls Seoul 'Double‑Dealing' After U.S. Cuts Joint Drills; Russia Welcomes Move
FILE PHOTO: U.S. Army soldiers move jerrycans at a U.S. army base near the demilitarized zone separating two Koreas, in Dongducheon, South Korea, August 18, 2026. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji/File Photo
Aug 20 (Reuters): North Korea's Kim Yo Jong, the sister of leader Kim Jong Un, sharply criticized South Korean President Lee Jae‑myung on Thursday, calling his reaction to Washington's decision to reduce joint military drills "double‑dealing remarks" that revealed "uneasiness and impatience," state news agency KCNA reported.
Lee wrote on his X account that he recognised former President Donald Trump's "will and efforts to create conditions for dialogue" with North Korea through the decision to scale back the exercises. The combined military drills by South Korea and the United States were curtailed to end on Friday after Trump ordered a substantial reduction in U.S. participation and said he wanted to revive diplomacy with Kim Jong Un.
"President Trump's message this time feels like a major decision made with careful consideration to create peace on the Korean Peninsula, moving beyond hostility and confrontation," Lee wrote on X.
Kim Yo Jong dismissed Seoul's framing of the reductions as "nothing but a lame excuse," KCNA said. Trump later said he had received a response from North Korea's leader after the drills reduction, but Kim Yo Jong told reporters she was unaware of any recent communications between her brother and Trump and reiterated that the United States' "hostile policy" toward Pyongyang had not changed.
Broader Reactions
Russia, which has moved closer to North Korea since the 2022 start of the Ukraine war, welcomed the U.S. decision on Thursday to scale back exercises with South Korea. At her weekly briefing, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow — as part of the Asia‑Pacific region — had warned that such drills risked destabilising regional security. "Therefore, any measures aimed at reducing the potential for conflict and minimising security risks can only be welcomed," she said.
The exchange highlights divergent reactions in Seoul, Pyongyang and Moscow to Washington's move to pare back participation in the joint drills and underscores continuing diplomatic uncertainty on the Korean Peninsula.
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