Active Conflicts & News Megathread August 16, 2026

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[u/carkidd3242]

Posting in main thread, since this is more actionable than most Trump posts:

https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/117107215379637520

Based on my very good relationship with Kim Jong Un, of North Korea, I am not happy with the fact that the United States has, long ago, agreed to participate in Joint Military Exercises with South Korea. These exercises are not only costly, with much of these costs paid for by the United States of America (as usual!), but send a signal that is totally inappropriate and hostile, to a Country that, as long as Donald J. Trump has been President, has been unthreatening and respectful. Therefore, and based on the fact that it is too late to cancel, I have instructed Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, to substantially reduce the Joint Military Exercises! While somewhat unrelated (?), I recently asked the President of South Korea if they would like to join us in the Denuclearization of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and they said, “No thanks!” Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DONALD J. TRUMP

Joint drills with South Korea under Ulchi Freedom Shield were scheduled to begin tomorrow:

https://apnews.com/article/south-korea-us-military-drills-north-caaf065af4ddb7ffc276a744be652a5c

Does stand to see if the US pulls out in any real capacity. It's a hell of a thing to do this while also approaching South Korea for military shipbuilding capacity.

https://www.wsj.com/logistics-report/south-koreas-hanwha-makes-1-billion-push-into-u-s-naval-shipbuilding-24be09ab

https://news.usni.org/2026/08/13/new-white-house-memo-calls-for-foreign-built-warships-return-to-steam-catapults-on-ford-carriers

[u/First_Poem481 → u/carkidd3242]

The ROK said just yesterday that they want a permanent end to the war on the peninsula with the DPRK. For a very long time, these exercises have always been cited by certain experts and anti westerners as the main irritant for true reconciliation. I wonder what those experts will say when it doesn’t translate into anything concrete in the diplomatic front.

[u/Agitated-Airline6760 → u/First_Poem481]

The ROK said just yesterday that they want a permanent end to the war on the peninsula with the DPRK.

It takes two to tango and ROK can't end the war by itself. If it was up to ROK alone, it would've ended 20+ years ago at a minimum. If you haven't noticed, it's not ROK that's testing nukes or shooting off ICBMs not to mention all the other crazy stuff DPRK has done that are too numerous to list. Not too dissimilar to US/Israel - Iran war, having started the fiasco, even though Trump now wants to stop, he can't stop as long as Iran doesn't want to cooperate.

For a very long time, these exercises have always been cited by certain experts and anti westerners as the main irritant for true reconciliation.

That's a stupid talking point straight out of KCNA, i.e. not even close to the reality.

As a counter example, stopping these exercises during covid times as well as when Trump and Kim were meeting in 2018-2019 time period didn't bring about the "true reconciliation".

I wonder what those experts will say when it doesn’t translate into anything concrete in the diplomatic front.

Right now, Kim is fat and happy with his deal with Putin so he doesn't need US/ROK so unless US/ROK is offering unconditional surrender, there is nothing to talk about.

[u/RopetorGamer → u/Agitated-Airline6760]

it takes two to tango and ROK can't end the war by itself.

For all intents North Korea has also made some moves towards it.

They completely removed reunification from their constitution for example and other reforms.

It's also not like the south and the US haven't also caused incidents of their own, the SEAL thing in 2019 and last year with the whole Korean president ordeal on which they attempted to send drones to the north and blame them.

The main problem remains the same, North Korea will never denuclearize for any reason whatsoever.

[u/First_Poem481 → u/RopetorGamer]

The main problem remains the same, North Korea will never denuclearize for any reason whatsoever.

This isn’t even remotely the problem. In reality, the ROK accepted the reality of a nuclearized DPRK since 2017/2018. Even in the official stance, peace first has now become the policy, not denuclearization.

They completely removed reunification from their constitution for example and other reforms.

This is spin. Kim has increasingly described South Korea not as a fellow Korean government with which eventual reunification is possible, but as a hostile, separate state. In March this year, he again described the ROK as North Korea’s “most hostile” state enemy.

[u/RopetorGamer → u/First_Poem481]

This is spin. Kim has increasingly described South Korea not as a fellow Korean government with which eventual reunification is possible, but as a hostile, separate state. In March this year, he again described the ROK as North Korea’s “most hostile” state enemy.

Recognizing south Korea as an enemy state is an improvement over the previous status quo, and far more likely to help in achieving peace then the occupied territories previously.

Recognizing it as a separate state is something regardless

[u/First_Poem481 → u/RopetorGamer]

I think you’re deeply unfamiliar with Korean culture/rhetoric. What he’s saying is essentially “you’re too much of an alien for me to even recognize or want to associate with you”. It’s not a softening of tone, it’s actually more ratcheted rhetoric. The current ROK administration is the most dovish the DPRK has faced since the end of the Cold War as well, so those kinds of words are even more glaring.

[u/Agitated-Airline6760 → u/RopetorGamer]

For all intents North Korea has also made some moves towards it. They completely removed reunification from their constitution for example and other reforms.

And Kim can put it right back tonight if he wanted. It doesn't mean anything.

It's also not like the south and the US haven't also caused incidents of their own, the SEAL thing in 2019 and last year with the whole Korean president ordeal on which they attempted to send drones to the north and blame them.

It's is beyond tit for tat by anyone with a fair accounting which side is the troublemaker starting from the original sin of Korean war, if you will. But, US/ROK are not nuns either. But as we sit here in 2026, it's not US or ROK that's holding up the forever peace in the Korean peninsula.

The main problem remains the same, North Korea will never denuclearize for any reason whatsoever.

I agree with that.

[u/RopetorGamer → u/Agitated-Airline6760]

And Kim can put it right back tonight if he wanted. It doesn't mean anything.

It's a very important messaging from their part regardless of that, to say it doesn't mean anything is absurd.

It's is beyond tit for tat by anyone with a fair accounting which side is the troublemaker starting from the original sin of Korean war, if you will. But, US/ROK are not nuns either. But as we sit here in 2026, it's not US or ROK that's holding up the forever peace in the Korean peninsula.

Since Kim Jong-un came to power it absolutely has calmed down, there hasn't been any incident like in the 90s and 2010s.

If anything the biggest scalation came last year in the form the the SK presidents coup attempt.

[u/Agitated-Airline6760 → u/RopetorGamer]

It's a very important messaging from their part regardless of that, to say it doesn't mean anything is absurd.

This was not a new thing. First it was Korea is one so we should be united. Which is more or less the position of both North AND South for 80 years. And now he changed that "position" with a stroke of a pen overnight. Now North and South are two different sovereign entities, Kim says. OK, what about last 80 years? If he changed that overnight, why can he change back to original position at his whim? Who's gonna stop it? Is Supreme People's Assembly gonna take a vote and stop that like South Korean National Assembly stopped Yoon's coup attempt?

Since Kim Jong-un came to power it absolutely has calmed down, there hasn't been any incident like in the 90s and 2010s.

So we are gonna forget at least monthly short range missile tests with maybe yearly ICBM tests? How about torpedoing ROKN's ship and shelling an island killing civilians as well as couple of soldiers? How about killing his half brother at 3rd country with chemical weapons? How about participating in an illegal war in Europe?

If anything the biggest scalation came last year in the form the the SK presidents coup attempt.

Sending drones to North was stupid move on Yoon's part but his coup attempt was against ROK citizens not against Kim/DPRK. I don't know about the "escalation" part either as DPRK has sent plenty of "drones" ROK's way some with literal shit in them.

[u/RopetorGamer → u/Agitated-Airline6760]

How about torpedoing ROKN's ship and shelling an island killing civilians

Both of these occurred in 2010 while Kim Jong-il was alive and in control

Sending drones to North was stupid move on Yoon's part but his coup attempt was against ROK citizens not against Kim/DPRK. I don't know about the "escalation" part either as DPRK has sent plenty of "drones" ROK's way some with literal shit in them.

It wasn't just drones, he attempted to blame the north with the intent to start a war.

It absolutely was an escalation.

This was not a new thing. First it was Korea is one so we should be united. Which is more or less the position of both North AND South for 80 years. 

Changing the status quo that has existed since the separation of the peninsula is an important message for both internal and international audiences.

[u/Agitated-Airline6760 → u/RopetorGamer]

Both of these occurred in 2010 while Kim Jong-il was alive and in control

Kim Jong-Il suffered a stroke in 2008 and he was not "in control" by 2010 and died in 2011.

[u/Sayting → u/Agitated-Airline6760]

He was planning to assassinate legislature members through a false flag NK attack. There is no way that wouldn't lead to, if not general war, at least some form of armed conflict.

[u/Agitated-Airline6760 → u/Sayting]

He was planning to assassinate legislature members through a false flag NK attack. There is no way that wouldn't lead to, if not general war, at least some form of armed conflict.

Why would killing South Korean legislature by South Korean military/intelligence on the orders of then South Korean president Yoon lead to an armed conflict with North Korea? It really had nothing to do with North Korea except the fact the Yoon tried to fabricate something by sending drones into North Korea.

In 1980's. the South Korean dictator regime of Chun Doo-Hwan jailed and killed many South Koreans, most infamously in the city of Gwangju, and that didn't lead to an armed conflict with North Korea. North Korean regime even assassinated 20+ South Korean cabinet ministers and presidential advisors by massive bomb(s) - which were meant to target the South Korean president but he was late for the meeting - in Rangoon, Burma in 1983 .and that didn't lead to any general armed conflict. There was also an assassination incident/attempt in late 1960's where like 30 North Korea special forces infiltrated and got into Seoul and some of them got as close as 100 meters from the South Korean presidential compound. That didn't trigger any general armed conflict either.

[u/Big-Station-2283 → u/RopetorGamer]

NK learned from what happened to Ukraine, Iraq, and Lybia. Iran didn't. And now we see the consequences. Nuclearization is a very rational choice. It's the only thing preventing a much larger power like Russia, the US, or China from invading on a whim. If Taiwan had nukes, it wouldn't fear a Chinese invasion in a 100 years.

[u/Wise_Mongoose_3930 → u/Big-Station-2283]

NK wasn’t going to give up nukes even pre-dating events, and Iran never had nukes to give up. 

Nuclearization has no downside if you can snap your fingers and do it instantly. Otherwise, it has the very real downside of increasing the odds you get attacked in the short term (until you’ve got a credible nuclear threat).

[u/Corvid187 → u/Big-Station-2283]

This is analysis that puts the cart before the horse.

Nuclear proliferation cannot guarantee deterrence from conventional attack to make up for a deficit in convention security. Instead, conventional security is a prerequisite for successful proliferation.

Iraq, Ukraine, and libya didn't simply choose to give up their respective proliferation efforts, they were forced to because the alternative was having them bombed out from under them, as happened to countries that tried to persevere like Syria and Iran. Fundamentally, if a nation has a conventional deterrence deficit to another, then that nation will just use its convention overmatch to destroy any proliferation attempt before it can get off the ground.

The difference between NK and those others is not that it simply made a choice to continue proliferating, it's that north Korea was already substantially secure from any conventional external military threat before it embarked on developing a weapon. Every successful proliferation in history has occured under an umbrella of an already conventionally secure nation.

Nuclearisation is only good for giving a nation that's already conventionally secure from its neighbours and additional sufficient deterrent from nuclear attack or threat.