SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper says South Korea is wealthy enough to pay a bigger share of the cost of having U.S. troops on its soil.
He was asked at a joint news conference Friday with his South Korean counterpart about negotiations on renewing an agreement under which Seoul plays a portion of the cost of having about 28,000 American troops to buttress defenses against North Korea.
Esper says the South’s wealth means – in his words – “it could and should pay more.”
South Korea currently pays a little under $1 billion a year for U.S. military support. South Korean press reports say Washington is demanding that Seoul pay about $4.7 billion. Neither Esper nor his South Korean counterpart confirmed that figure.