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The US State Department nominated Donna Welton, former assistant chief of mission at the US Embassy in Afghanistan, to be its new envoy for defense cost-sharing talks with South Korea and other countries on Aug. 3. Welton will succeed Jim DeHart, who is now the US coordinator for the Arctic region. Her appointment comes amid a stalemate in defense cost-sharing negotiations between Seoul and Washington. The US is reportedly demanding US$1.3 billion a year, a 50% increase from the previous agreement, which South Korea finds unacceptable. Welton will also step into the position at a time when there’s been much speculation about the US reducing or even withdrawing its troops from Korea. (US State Department website)