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.