Trump Scales Back Military Exercises With South Korea Because They're Not Nice For Kim Jong Un
President Donald Trump said Sunday that he has ordered the Pentagon to scale back joint military exercises with South Korea that were expected to begin this week.
In a Truth Social post, the president said his decision was based on his “very good relationship with Kim Jong Un,” and described North Korea as “unthreatening and respectful.” He also condemned South Korea for declining to help the U.S. denuclearize Iran.
The joint exercises were expected to last 11 days and involve 18,000 South Korean soldiers, The Associated Press reported. In a statement carried by state media Friday, North Korea described the training as “a rehearsal for an aggressive war.”
Trump said that he sees the exercises as “hostile” to North Korea and costly for the U.S., but because it was too late to cancel them, he had ordered a reduction instead.
On Saturday, Trump posted a photo of himself standing next to the North Korean dictator and said the two get along well “despite the unfriendly look on this particular picture.”
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Actor Hayden Panettiere Dies At 36
Hayden Panettiere, an actor known for her breakout roles on shows like “Heroes” and “Nashville,” has died, her representative confirmed to ABC News. She was 36.
“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden,” Panettiere’s father, Skip Panettiere, said in a statement. “She was an incredible light and a force of nature who brought immeasurable love and joy to all who knew her – and to the millions who watched her onscreen.”
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CENTCOM Chief Acknowledges Mental Health Challenges On USS Lincoln After Visit
After paying a visit to the USS Lincoln this weekend, Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of Central Command, conceded that some of the sailors on the aircraft carrier were experiencing mental health challenges.
“Of the U.S. Navy’s 11 active aircraft carriers, the Lincoln currently has among the lowest number of cases related to mental health,” Cooper said in a statement shared on social media. “This doesn’t mean that all is perfect.”
Cooper went on to describe how lengthy deployments at sea were “uniquely challenging and tough” and stressed the importance of prioritizing mental health.
“I’ve long believed that mental health is another aspect of individual health and requires our attention just like physical health and spiritual health,” he said.
Cooper’s visit and statement followed reports of poor conditions aboard the USS Lincoln, including food shortages, plumbing issues and declining mental health among the crew. Earlier this month, a sailor on the ship reportedly went overboard and was rescued.
Kushner Has A Rare Meeting With Hamas' Leader On The Gaza Road Map. A Meeting With Netanyahu Is Next
U.S. negotiator and President Donald Trump ’s son-in-law Jared Kushner held a rare meeting with the Hamas chief on Sunday in a new diplomatic effort to make progress in the stalled Gaza ceasefire. Kushner will meet on Monday with Israel’s prime minister, who is under pressure after rejecting the new 15-point, U.S.-backed road map.
The talks aim to salvage the plan for Hamas to disarm and Israel to withdraw from the Palestinian territory shattered by war.
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Democratic Republic Of Congo's Ebola Outbreak Becomes Deadliest In Country's History
The Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo has killed 2,325 people, government data showed on Sunday, surpassing the toll from the 2018-2020 outbreak to become the deadliest in the country’s history.
Congo’s public health institute said in its latest report that confirmed cases had risen to 4,945, including 101 new cases detected in the previous 24 hours.
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House Republican Urges ‘Oversight’ Of USS Lincoln After Reports Of Poor Conditions
GOP Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska on Sunday called for congressional oversight of the USS Abraham Lincoln amid reports of poor conditions on the aircraft carrier.
“We should have oversight,” Bacon said during an appearance on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” while adding that the secretary of the Navy or its service chief should testify in front of lawmakers. His statement adds to those of congressional Democrats who have similarly pressed military officials for more answers regarding how they’re supporting service members on extended deployments.
Bacon, a retired Air Force brigadier general and moderate Trump critic, also said that he had seen service members experiencing mental health challenges when he was stationed on an aircraft carrier in 1996. He noted that “we had a couple members jump overboard and commit suicide” at the time, describing the incidents as “terrible” and “sad.”
In the last few weeks, the families of service members on the USS Lincoln have sounded the alarm about the vessel’s conditions amid reports of food shortages, plumbing issues and mental health struggles among sailors onboard. On Friday, Acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao announced that the USS Lincoln would soon be returning home after a lengthy and grueling deployment.
Spokespeople for the Pentagon and the Navy did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the push for congressional oversight.