South Korea and the US negotiate defense cost sharing, North Korea issues new warning

Yonhap reported that talks on the Special Measures Agreement (SMA) will take place in Seoul from June 25-27, chaired by South Korean chief negotiator Lee Tae-woo and U.S. chief negotiator Linda Specht. The upcoming talks come approximately two weeks after their third round of negotiations in Washington.

The US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt arrived at the naval base in Busan (southeast South Korea) on June 22.

"We intend to conduct negotiations based on the premise that our defense spending must be at a reasonable level to create an environment for stable U.S. troop deployment in South Korea and strengthen the joint South Korea-U.S. defense posture," a South Korean Foreign Ministry official stated.

South Korea and the U.S. launched talks earlier than expected in April to avoid a tough bargaining situation with Washington should former President Donald Trump return to the White House. The two sides had previously clashed over cost-sharing in earlier negotiations under Trump, with Washington demanding Seoul increase its payment fivefold to $5 billion.

According to the latest SMA, South Korea has agreed to increase its payments by 13.9% to $1.03 billion for 2021 and to increase annual payments for the following four years to match Seoul's increased defense spending. In the early 1990s, South Korea also shared the burden of the U.S. military deployment costs to fund local labor, build military facilities, and provide other logistical support.

North Korea issues new deterrent warning.

North Korea today, June 24, condemned the US sending a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to the Korean Peninsula, warning it is ready to take "new and strong" deterrent measures against such a provocation. According to the KCNA news agency, North Korean Vice Defense Minister Kim Kang-il criticized Washington and Seoul for playing a "very dangerous game" to show off their strength.

The South Korean Navy announced on June 22 that the US Navy's nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt had arrived at the Busan naval base to participate in joint military exercises, demonstrating the strong joint defense posture of the US-South Korea alliance to better counter threats.

The USS Theodore Roosevelt arrived in South Korea approximately seven months after another US aircraft carrier, the USS Carl Vinson, also visited the country.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/han-quoc-my-dam-phan-chia-se-chi-phi-quoc-phong-trieu-tien-canh-bao-moi-185240624210245054.htm