Mar 7, 2021 - World

U.S. and South Korea reach cost-sharing deal on troops

Axios

A South Korean woman holds flags of South Korea and the US during a rally commemorating the 70th anniversary of the beginning of the Korean War in Seoul on June 25 — A woman holds flags of South Korea and the U.S. during a June rally in Seoul, South Korea. Photo: Jung Yeon-je/AFP via Getty Images

The U.S. and South Korea announced Sunday they've reached an agreement "in principle" on a new cost-sharing plan for the American troop presence on the Korean Peninsula.

Driving the news: The State Department's Bureau of Political-Military Affairs said in a Twitter post there had been a "negotiated increase" from South Korea in support for the U.S. troops' presence, without elaborating further.

The deal will last through 2025, notes the Wall Street Journal, which first reported on the agreement.

Of note: The U.S. has some 28,000 troops in South Korea in order to protect against the threat of North Korea, a result of the 1950–53 Korean War, per AP.

Relations between the U.S. and South Korea had become strained over the Special Measures Agreement under former President Trump, who wanted South Korea to pay more.
Trump once demanded Seoul double its contribution to $1.6 billion before a deal to pay some $924 million was struck in 2019, per AP.
The State Department didn't immediately respond to Axios' request for comment on further details of the agreement.

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U.S. and South Korea reach cost-sharing deal on troops

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