'No Reason To Spend On US-South Korea War Games For Now', Says Trump

US Army soldiers and M1A1 Bradley infantry fighting vehicle participating in a series of training exercises in South Korea, 2016. (Image: PA Images)

US President Donald Trump has said there is no reason to spend more money on military war games with South Korea - but warned he could "instantly" relaunch the exercises and they could be "far bigger than ever before."

Mr Trump made the comments in a series of tweets that primarily took aim at China, blaming it for a lack of progress on getting North Korea to end its nuclear programme following the President's landmark summit with Kim Jong Un in June.

In what was cited as a statement on Mr Trump's Twitter, it said:

"The president believes that his relationship with Kim Jong Un is a very good and warm one, and there is no reason at this time to be spending large amounts of money on joint US-South Korea war games."

But there was also some message aimed at Mr Kim.

"Besides, the president can instantly start the joint exercises again with South Korea, and Japan, if he so chooses. If he does, they will be far bigger than ever before."

It follows a statement to the contrary earlier this week by his Defence secretary James Mattis - where he told reporters that the US might carry out drills with South Korea next spring after cancelling a major exercise this summer.

He said no decision had been made on when to resume military exercises, but his statements suggested the recent cancellation might not be repeated.

The cancellation of military exercises off the Korean peninsula was announced by Mr Trump in June.

It acted as an olive branch to Pyongyang, which has long complained that the exercises were invasion preparations.

Often the North has reacted to the exercises with its own demonstrations of military might, including firing a new intermediate-range missile over Japan last year as a countermeasure to the drills.

There was some hope that the gesture of shelving the exercises would foster goodwill and help nudge the North in the denuclearisation talks.

But beyond returning the potential remains of about 55 US troops missing from the Korean War, and its continuing suspension in its missile and nuclear tests, there has been little movement from the North.

As a result, the US last week shelved a planned trip to Pyongyang by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, citing the lack of progress on denuclearisation, but remaining open to future talks.

On Wednesday, the president accused Beijing of pressuring the North because of current tensions in US-China trade relations, and also of providing North Korea money, fuel, fertiliser and other commodities, which he said was not helpful.

China cooperated with the US last year in adopting tough international sanctions against North Korea and maintains it is still enforcing the restrictions adopted by the UN Security Council.

But in his tweets, Mr Trump also signalled that the US has its own military means of exerting pressure on Pyongyang.