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US president also demands increased contributions from other NATO members

US President Donald Trump brought up the stationing of US Forces Korea (USFK) and demanded a large increase in South Korea’s share of defense costs in remarks made while visiting the United Kingdom on Dec. 3. The message of overt pressure coincided with a fourth meeting in Washington, DC, the same day for the South Korea-US Special Measures Agreement (SMA) on defense cost-sharing.

While in London to attend a NATO summit, Trump spoke with reporters during a 50-minute question-and-answer exchange after a breakfast meeting that morning with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. When asked whether it was in the US’ security interests to continue stationing its current number of troops on the Korean Peninsula, Trump replied, "It can be debated. I can go either way. I can make arguments both ways.”

“I think if we’re going to do it [. . .] they [South Korea] should burden-share more fairly,” he added.

While Trump did not specifically mention the possibility of a USFK withdrawal, his response that the question of whether to continue stationing or withdraw them “can be debated” reaffirmed his basic position in favor of withdrawing US troops stationed overseas. His remarks about “burden-sharing more fairly” to continue stationing US troops were seen as hinting at his aims of using the USFK issue as leverage in the defense cost sharing negotiations.

Trump also referenced the ongoing defense cost-sharing negotiations with South Korea in his response to a question about North Korea.

“We’re spending a tremendous amount of money to protect South Korea, and we think that it’s fair that they pay substantially more,” he said.

“[The amount South Korea pays is] still substantially less than it costs. So now we’re in a negotiation for them to pay more. And they can do that because they’re a very rich country,” he continued.

Trump also said, “It’s not fair for the United States to defend many countries -- not only that country [South Korea], but many countries [. . .] -- and they’re rich countries.”

“I could tell you there’s five other countries that I’ve had the same conversations with,” he added, explaining that he had also demanded larger defense cost shares from Saudi Arabia and Japan. Regarding the other NATO members, Trump argued the same day that the increase of defense spending to 2% of GDP by 2024 was too small and should be 4% instead.

In discussing the South Korea-US defense cost-sharing issue, Trump occasionally quoted numbers of unclear basis while congratulating his own performance. At one point, he said that South Korea was “paying less than $500 million a year,” explaining that he had demanded six or seven months earlier that it pay another $500 million, which “got them up to close to a billion dollars.” In the 2019 defense cost sharing negotiations concluded in February of this year, South Korea agreed to pay 1.04 trillion won (US$870,04 million), an increase of 8.2% from the previous year -- a long way from the “US$500 million” mentioned by Trump on Dec. 3. Trump also said the US had “32,000 soldiers” in USFK, when the actual number is 28,500.

Responding to Trump’s calls that day for a larger share of defense costs, Jeong Eun-bo, South Korea’s ambassador to the cost sharing negotiations said, “We don’t see this as an additional change in the situation.”

Speaking to reporters in front of the State Department complex in Washington that day, Jeong said, “President Trump has spoken several times about issues about an increase on principle.”

While leaving for lunch after a morning meeting with the US side that day, Jeong was asked by reporters whether there had been any mention of Trump’s remarks about USFK during the meeting.

“None at all,” he replied.

By Hwang Joon-bum, Washington correspondent

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