Jannatul Firdaus
JF-Expert Member
- Aug 4, 2026
- 446
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Uchaguzi wa kijeshi wa kila mwaka wa Korea Kusini na Marekani umepunguzwa kwa siku sita kwa ombi la Washington, Wizara ya Ulinzi ya Korea Kusini imetangaza.
Seoul imesema kuwa “muda na ukubwa” wa zoezi la kijeshi la Ulchi Freedom Shield 2026 umebadilishwa kufuatia “pendekezo kutoka upande wa Marekani”.
Zoezi hilo sasa litamalizika Agosti 21, badala ya Agosti 27 kama ilivyopangwa awali. Hatua hiyo imekuja baada ya Rais wa Marekani, Donald Trump, kutangaza mipango ya kupunguza mazoezi ya kijeshi yanayofanywa pamoja na Korea Kusini, akieleza kuwa ana uhusiano “mzuri sana” na kiongozi wa Korea Kaskazini, Kim Jong Un.
Waziri wa Mambo ya Nje wa Korea Kusini, Cho Hyun, aliwaambia wabunge kwamba maafisa wa Korea Kusini wala Marekani hawakuwa wamefahamu mapema kuhusu mipango ya Trump.
Seoul pia imesema sehemu ya zoezi inayohusisha mafunzo ya kijeshi uwanjani itapunguzwa kwa kiwango fulani. Hata hivyo, maelezo mahsusi kuhusu kiwango cha upunguzaji huo bado yanaendelea kujadiliwa.
Kupunguzwa kwa zoezi hilo kwa kiwango hicho kumeibua wasiwasi nchini Korea Kusini kuhusu dhamira ya Marekani ya kuisaidia katika kipindi cha tishio, chini ya mkataba wa ulinzi unaounda msingi wa uhusiano kati ya mataifa hayo mawili.
Hatua hiyo pia inatoa ujumbe kwa washirika wengine wa Marekani katika eneo hilo, wakiwemo Japan na Taiwan.
Tangazo hilo limekuja baada ya maafisa wa Marekani kuiambia Wall Street Journal kwamba Trump anawasukuma wasaidizi wake kuandaa mkutano na Kim Jong Un.
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South Korea's annual joint military drills with the US will be cut short by six days at the request of Washington, its defence ministry has announced.
Seoul said that the "period and scale" of the 2026 Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise had been adjusted due to a "proposal of the US side".
The drill will now conclude on 21 August, rather than 27 August as planned. It comes after Donald Trump announced plans to curtail exercises with South Korea, citing his "very good" relationship with North Korea's Kim Jong Un.
South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun told a parliamentary hearing that neither South Korean nor US officials had been aware in advance about Trump's plans.
The combined field training exercise component of the drills will also be "partially reduced in scale", Seoul said, noting that the "specific details" of that reduction are still under discussion.
The unprecedented curtailing shakes South Korea's confidence in America's commitment to come to its aid, under a defence pact that is the foundation of their relationship.
It also sends a signal to other US allies in the region like Japan and Taiwan.
The announcement comes after US officials told the Wall Street Journal that Trump is pushing his aides for a meeting with Kim Jong Un.
Seoul imesema kuwa “muda na ukubwa” wa zoezi la kijeshi la Ulchi Freedom Shield 2026 umebadilishwa kufuatia “pendekezo kutoka upande wa Marekani”.
Zoezi hilo sasa litamalizika Agosti 21, badala ya Agosti 27 kama ilivyopangwa awali. Hatua hiyo imekuja baada ya Rais wa Marekani, Donald Trump, kutangaza mipango ya kupunguza mazoezi ya kijeshi yanayofanywa pamoja na Korea Kusini, akieleza kuwa ana uhusiano “mzuri sana” na kiongozi wa Korea Kaskazini, Kim Jong Un.
Waziri wa Mambo ya Nje wa Korea Kusini, Cho Hyun, aliwaambia wabunge kwamba maafisa wa Korea Kusini wala Marekani hawakuwa wamefahamu mapema kuhusu mipango ya Trump.
Seoul pia imesema sehemu ya zoezi inayohusisha mafunzo ya kijeshi uwanjani itapunguzwa kwa kiwango fulani. Hata hivyo, maelezo mahsusi kuhusu kiwango cha upunguzaji huo bado yanaendelea kujadiliwa.
Kupunguzwa kwa zoezi hilo kwa kiwango hicho kumeibua wasiwasi nchini Korea Kusini kuhusu dhamira ya Marekani ya kuisaidia katika kipindi cha tishio, chini ya mkataba wa ulinzi unaounda msingi wa uhusiano kati ya mataifa hayo mawili.
Hatua hiyo pia inatoa ujumbe kwa washirika wengine wa Marekani katika eneo hilo, wakiwemo Japan na Taiwan.
Tangazo hilo limekuja baada ya maafisa wa Marekani kuiambia Wall Street Journal kwamba Trump anawasukuma wasaidizi wake kuandaa mkutano na Kim Jong Un.
================================
South Korea's annual joint military drills with the US will be cut short by six days at the request of Washington, its defence ministry has announced.
Seoul said that the "period and scale" of the 2026 Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise had been adjusted due to a "proposal of the US side".
The drill will now conclude on 21 August, rather than 27 August as planned. It comes after Donald Trump announced plans to curtail exercises with South Korea, citing his "very good" relationship with North Korea's Kim Jong Un.
South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun told a parliamentary hearing that neither South Korean nor US officials had been aware in advance about Trump's plans.
The combined field training exercise component of the drills will also be "partially reduced in scale", Seoul said, noting that the "specific details" of that reduction are still under discussion.
The unprecedented curtailing shakes South Korea's confidence in America's commitment to come to its aid, under a defence pact that is the foundation of their relationship.
It also sends a signal to other US allies in the region like Japan and Taiwan.
The announcement comes after US officials told the Wall Street Journal that Trump is pushing his aides for a meeting with Kim Jong Un.
