Retired Air Force Colonel Rips Apart Trump’s Order to Cut ‘Hostile’ Military Exercises Near North Korea

Retired Air Force Colonel Cedric Leighton bashed President Donald Trump’s order to “substantially” cut back on joint military exercises with South Korea, with Leighton saying it will “damage” the USA-South Korea relationship and mess with the balance of power in the Pacific.

Leighton shared his analysis on CNN, soon after Trump declared he had ordered Pete Hegseth to reduce the planned exercises.

Tthe president said they were not necessary because they could be perceived as a “totally inappropriate and hostile” act towards North Korea, which he said has been “unthreatening and respectful” since he entered the White House. Trump added had a “very good relationship” with dictator Kim Jong Un, which was another reason the exercises should be chopped down.

“This particular situation, what you’re seeing is the North Koreans are getting an advantage — really, an unforced error on our part,” Leighton said. “It’s going to damage the relationship we have with the SOuth Koreans, and that’s not a good thing.”

A moment earlier, Leighton said it could have “some serious impacts on our relationships in the Pacific realm,” and he criticized the president for saying earlier the U.S. was going to pay for the entire operation; Leighton said that was “absolutely false.”

He continued, saying the exercises were “critical” for the joint defense of South Korea and Japan, as well as the United States.

Leighton served in the U.S. Air Force for 26 years before he retired in 2010; he joined CNN as the channel’s chief military analyst five years later.

His appearance on CNN followed shortly after Trump said he was “not happy” with the scheduled joint exercises and had told Hegseth to scrap many of them. The president also ripped South Korea a bit for telling him “No thanks!” — as Trump put it — when he asked if the country wanted to help with the Iran war.

Watch above.

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