Latest news with #U.S.ForcesKorea
CNBC
19-05-2025
- Business
- CNBC
Trump wants a 'one-stop shopping' deal with South Korea on trade and defense, but there is a cost
Sharing the costs of hosting U.S. troops in allied countries has been a favorite topic of U.S. President Donald Trump since his first term in the White House. But as more countries try to eke out a deal to escape the spectre of tariffs in his second term, Trump is making his own moves: bundling negotiations on trade, tariffs, and defense cost-sharing into a single comprehensive deal, which he called "one-stop shopping." One such country in his sights is South Korea, which is home to about 28,500 U.S. troops known as U.S. Forces Korea. On April 8, Trump wrote on Truth Social that he had discussed "payment for the big time Military Protection we provide to South Korea," among other issues, with then-acting president Han Duck-soo. "We are bringing up other subjects that are not covered by Trade and Tariffs, and getting them negotiated also. "ONE STOP SHOPPING" is a beautiful and efficient process!!!" Trump wrote. While South Korean officials have reportedly said that defense payments are off the table, the country's two leading presidential candidates, Lee Jae-myung and Kim Moon-soo, have hinted that they are open to discussing a defense cost-sharing agreement. However, analysts told CNBC that a transactional approach wouldn't necessarily work in the U.S.'s favor. At the Munich Security Conference in February, then-Singapore Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said, "It has been said that trade and security are two sides of the same coin, and one assumes that as trade dependencies shift, security alliances will follow." But, the image of the U.S. in Asia, Ng said, "has changed from liberator to great disruptor to a landlord seeking rent." The U.S. president is likely to bring defense payments up in trade talks, Bruce Bennett, Professor of Policy Analysis at the RAND School of Public Policy, told CNBC. "It's the way he does business," Bennett said. "So it's not like he definitely wants to bring troops home, but it is a matter that he wants the recognition and the acceptance of responsibility from our allies," he added. This was the stance espoused by U.S. Under Secretary of Defense Elbridge Colby, who said in a 2024 interview that U.S. Forces Korea should be overhauled to be "more relevant" to handling China, as opposed to North Korea. One way South Korea could "pay more" is by investing in its forces and buying more U.S. military equipment, Bennett said. This will enable the South Korean military to plug any capability gaps while allowing U.S. Forces Korea to focus more on China, he added. "[If] the Korean government says we're volunteering to ...raise our budget by $3 or $4 billion, we're going to use it to buy equipment so that the U.S. can have a shift in focus, I think that would go a long way to meeting the President's interests." South Korea spent 2.6% of its GDP on defense in 2024, more than the global average of 2.5%, and one of the highest in the world, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. In 2025, the country allocated 61.25 trillion South Korean won ($43.83 billion) for defense, or a 3.1% increase from the year before. However, such a transactional approach will damage U.S. credibility, Hoshik Nam, assistant professor at the Department of Sociology and Political Science at Jacksonville State University, said. Using the deployment of U.S. forces as leverage in trade negotiations could lead close allies to perceive U.S. commitments as less credible, Nam added. "In the long term, this position could reframe the U.S. as an isolated superpower." South Korea wasn't required to make any financial contribution in its original 1966 agreement with the U.S on troops stationed in the country, known as the Status of Forces Agreement. Cost sharing only became a feature of the alliance in 1991, when Seoul agreed to share some of the burden of stationing U.S. troops in three areas, namely logistics, local labor, and military construction. Nam explained that South Korea's rapid economic growth from the 1960s created the conditions for cost-sharing. "Both countries also agreed that their relationship should move beyond a simple aid-provider and recipient dynamic," he noted. The funds provided by the South Korean government also created local jobs and helped local industries, Nam said. "Regarding construction, most projects are carried out by Korean construction companies. In terms of logistics, the equipment, services, and facilities are all supplied by Korean companies," Nam highlighted. In October 2024, Seoul agreed to raise its contribution for hosting U.S. troops by 8.3% in 2026, to 1.52 trillion won ($1.13 billion). However, Trump's 'one stop shopping' stance to bundle trade with defense agreements could throw the latest cost-sharing agreement by the Biden administration into jeopardy, given that the 2024 agreement covers the period of 2026-2030.
Newsweek
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
US Prepares South Korea To Face Nuclear Attack by North
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The United States has recently provided military training to South Korea, its treaty ally in Northeast Asia, for operating under a nuclear attack that might be launched by North Korea. Newsweek has reached out to the North Korean Embassy in China for comment by email. Why It Matters North Korea is one of the nine countries armed with nuclear weapons. Its leader, Kim Jong Un, has pledged to keep the country's nuclear arsenal, which is estimated to have around 50 warheads, to strengthen deterrents against the U.S. and its South Korean and Japanese allies. This photo provided by the North Korean government shows what it says is a test launch of new intercontinental ballistic missile Hwasong-19 on October 31, 2024, at an undisclosed site in North Korea. This photo provided by the North Korean government shows what it says is a test launch of new intercontinental ballistic missile Hwasong-19 on October 31, 2024, at an undisclosed site in North Korea. KCNA via AP Facing North Korea's nuclear threats, the U.S. has been rotating its military assets, including aircraft carriers, heavy bombers, and nuclear-armed submarines, to the Korean Peninsula as a show of force while pursuing the goal of the "complete denuclearization of North Korea." What To Know From April 15 to 16, the U.S. Army Nuclear and Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Agency, which provides nuclear and countering weapons of mass destruction expertise and analysis, conducted the first training course in South Korea, the U.S. Forces Korea revealed. The training, formally known as the Nuclear Weapon Effects Course-Korea, took place at a South Korean Strategic Command facility in Seoul. The command was launched in October 2024 to counter nuclear and weapons of mass destruction threats posed by North Korea. The course aimed at equipping participants with "knowledge and skills necessary to operate effectively in and through a nuclear environment," the U.S. Forces Korea said in the press release on Tuesday, which can strengthen deterrence against "nuclear-armed adversaries." The Korean Service Corps 22nd Company conducts its annual Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, and Explosives (CBRNE) training at Camp Humphreys in South Korea on April 7, 2025. The Korean Service Corps 22nd Company conducts its annual Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, and Explosives (CBRNE) training at Camp Humphreys in South Korea on April 7, 2025. Spc. Caelum Astra/U.S. Army A total of eight South Korean members, assigned to the Strategic Command and the Defense Ministry, took part in the training, as well as five people sent by the U.S.-South Korea joint warfighting headquarters, the Combined Forces Command, according to the press release. South Korean admiral Kim Myung Soo, who serves as the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff as the country's top military officer, on Thursday visited a bunker buster missile unit, which operates the domestically developed Korean Tactical Surface to Surface Missile. During the visit, the admiral urged for what he called "overwhelming capabilities" to deter potential provocations from North Korea, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff reported. What People Are Saying The U.S. Forces Korea said: "The training content is also directly applicable to Alliance tabletop exercises and wargames focused on conventional-nuclear integration, and enhancing the combined joint force's strategic understanding." U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said: "North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is pursuing stronger, strategic, and conventional capabilities that can target U.S. forces and allies in the region, as well as the U.S. homeland, to bolster North Korea's leverage and stature, defend its regime, and achieve at least tacit recognition as a nuclear weapons power." What Happens Next It remains to be seen when North Korea will carry out a new round of provocations, such as launching ballistic missiles, as the U.S. is enhancing its military presence in Northeast Asia.
Axios
11-04-2025
- Politics
- Axios
U.S. moves Patriot defenses to Middle East with dozens of C-17 flights
The U.S. military shifted a Patriot battalion from the Indo-Pacific to the Middle East, requiring at least 73 flights, according to one commander. Why it matters: The air defenses are a high-profile resource, capable of intercepting missiles and aircraft. They arrive at a volatile moment. Further, the number of C-17 flights conducted underscores just how stressful materiel moves can be. The Boeing-made aircraft can transport hefty equipment, like tanks. Context: Indo-Pacific Command boss Adm. Samuel Paparo disclosed the details in a congressional hearing Thursday. He was accompanied by Gen. Xavier Brunson, the commander of U.S. Forces Korea. Paparo told senators U.S. "lift requirements must be paid attention to." Sustainment, he added, "won World War II." What they're saying: "The airlift is essential to protect key U.S. bases and partners in the Middle East, which otherwise are much more vulnerable than Israel to Iran's shorter-range missiles," Jonathan Ruhe, director of foreign policy at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, told Axios. Zoom out: The move comes amid a buildup across U.S. Central Command. The Carl Vinson aircraft carrier joined the Harry S. Truman in the region. The command on Thursday shared footage of aircraft launching from the decks. Satellite images show a handful of B-2 bombers dispatched to Diego Garcia, an island in the Indian Ocean. Hans Kristensen at the Federation of American Scientists described the grouping as "unusually large." Meanwhile, airstrikes in Yemen have killed dozens of people, including Houthi drone experts. An initial wave in March hit 30-plus targets, according to the Pentagon.
Yahoo
11-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Reducing U.S. troops in South Korea would be ‘problematic,' top commander warns
SEOUL, April 11 (UPI) -- As North Korea continues to develop its weapons programs and strengthens military ties with Russia, a reduction of U.S. troops based in South Korea would be "problematic," the commander of U.S. Forces Korea said. Army Gen. Xavier Brunson made the comment during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Thursday, amid concerns that the administration of President Donald Trump might look to downsize the U.S. military footprint in South Korea and elsewhere. "We pay for U.S. military in Europe, and we don't get reimbursed by much. South Korea, too," Trump said while speaking to reporters in the Oval Office Wednesday. During his previous term in office, Trump called for massive increases in Seoul's financial contribution for the 28,500 U.S. forces stationed in Korea, at one point reportedly demanding a 400% hike from then-President Moon Jae-in and dragging negotiations out for months. Seoul signed a new five-year cost-sharing agreement with Washington in October, but Trump has suggested he is looking to renegotiate the terms of the deal. On Tuesday, he wrote on his Truth Social platform that he had spoken with South Korean acting President Han Duck-soo about trade issues, including "payment for the big time Military Protection we provide to South Korea." Brunson told the Senate committee that U.S. troops in South Korea not only deter North Korean threats but are a crucial line of defense against Russia and China as well. "They are a critical component to ballistic missile defense in the region," Brunson said. "They are critical to helping Indo-Pacific Command see, sense and understand threats to the north and to deter a great many adversaries." "To reduce the force becomes problematic," he said. Brunson, who also leads the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command and U.N. Command, warned of North Korea's advancing nuclear and weapons programs and its growing military ties with Russia. "The DPRK has shipped millions of artillery rounds and dozens of ballistic missiles to Russia over the last year as well as deployed more than 10,000 troops to fight against Ukrainian forces," Brunson wrote in a statement submitted to the committee. The Democratic People's Republic of Korea is the official name of North Korea. "In return, Russia is expanding sharing of space, nuclear, and missile-applicable technology, expertise and materials to the DPRK," Brunson wrote. "Russia's expanded cooperation will enable advancements of DPRK's weapons of mass destruction program across the next three to five years." Pyongyang has demonstrated an ability to simultaneously provide external military support while simultaneously advancing its own domestic capabilities, Brunson added, boosted by cybercrime operations, weapons exports and illicit trade. In February, North Korean hackers pulled off the largest cryptocurrency heist in history, stealing $1.5 billion of virtual assets from crypto exchange Bybit. "Contrary to predictions of collapse due to food shortages, the DPRK is more stable than ever, bolstered by substantial resources generated through new revenue streams," Brunson wrote. During the hearing, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command Commander Adm. Samuel Paparo Jr. also warned that a reduction in American troops would raise the likelihood of a North Korean invasion. "With the loss of the force on the Korean Peninsula, there's a higher probability that [North Korea] would invade," Paparo said. "Inherently, it would reduce our ability to prevail in conflict," he added.
Korea Herald
26-03-2025
- Climate
- Korea Herald
Military deploys more personnel, choppers to fight wildfires
The military deployed an additional 990 personnel and 48 helicopters Wednesday to help combat wildfires that have devastated the country's southeastern regions, the defense ministry said. At least 18 have been killed so far due to a wave of wildfires that began Friday and has since ravaged the southeastern regions, with strong winds hampering firefighting efforts against the spreading blazes. With the latest deployment, the military has so far mobilized some 6,000 personnel and 242 helicopters to help contain the wildfires, the ministry said. It has also supplied about 20,000 pieces of relief goods -- such as blankets and ration packs -- as well as 400,000 liters of petroleum to fuel helicopters operated by other government agencies. In addition, four helicopters from the U.S. Forces Korea, including a UH-60 Blackhawk and a CH-47 Chinook, will also be deployed in the Sancheong area in South Gyeongsang Province. In a response meeting held earlier in the day, acting Defense Minister Kim Seon-ho ordered proactively supporting residents in areas hit by the wildfires while emphasizing safety and health guidelines for deployed personnel, the ministry said.
