South Korean Lawmakers Object to Covering Costs for US Troops in Indo-Pacific - Reports
Lawmakers from South Korea's ruling Democratic Party submitted a resolution to parliament in which they stated their objection to a recent US demand that Seoul should pay for the maintenance of US troops in the greater Indo-Pacific region, claiming that the request went against the bilateral Special Measures Agreement
SEOUL (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th November, 2019) Lawmakers from South Korea's ruling Democratic Party submitted a resolution to parliament in which they stated their objection to a recent US demand that Seoul should pay for the maintenance of US troops in the greater Indo-Pacific region, claiming that the request went against the bilateral Special Measures Agreement.
Last week, South Korean media reported that during the bilateral talks on November 5, Washington demanded that Seoul pay a total of $4.7 billion in maintenance costs in certain locations near South Korea. The amount is almost five time more than what Seoul currently pays under the cost-sharing deal
"The United States' demands during the current negotiations to include maintenance costs of the US troops abroad, as per their security strategy in the Indo-Pacific, do not conform to the goals of the defense cost-sharing agreement between South Korea and the US and violate the reciprocity principle of the US-South Korean alliance," the resolution read, as quoted by South Korea's Yonhap news agency.
In their document, the lawmakers laid out six prerequisites for the current cost-sharing agreement to be ratified, including the authorization of control of court auditors over how the funds are used, no addition of new points, and the creation of rational standards of cost-sharing to be used in future talks.
The US and South Korean are scheduled to hold annual talks between their joint chiefs of staff chairmen later in the day in Seoul to discuss, among other things, the relocation of the US troops in South Korea.
Seoul wants the United States Forces Korea military bases that are scattered around the country to be consolidated to Pyeongtaek, a city some 44 miles south of Seoul, where the Camp Humphreys military complex is located. Out of 80 bases, 54 have already been relocated and 26 are pending. The move has sparked speculation that the government is trying to strengthen its military leverage by gathering all US troops from across the country into a single hub amid the recent strife in South Korea's relations with Japan.