Tag: Cost Sharing

I wonder if the coronavirus test kits that South Korea has agreed to send to the U.S. had any bearing on the ongoing US-ROK cost sharing negotiations:

U.S. and South Korea are close to reaching a defense cost-sharing deal, a negotiator said Tuesday in Seoul on the eve of American military plans to put half of its local work force on unpaid leave.

U.S. Forces Korea was able to keep about 4,500 South Korean employees determined to be essential for maintaining “life, health, safety and minimum readiness.”

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

Here is the latest on the USFK furlough issue:

U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) said Thursday it has completed sorting out its Korean employees that provide essential duties to be excluded from a potential furlough in case Seoul and Washington fail to work out a defense cost-sharing deal in time.

The USFK has warned that some of its 9,000 Korean workers could be forced to go on unpaid leave starting in April should Seoul and Washington fail to reach a deal on the Special Measures Agreement (SMA) that regulates their sharing of the upkeep of the 28,500-strong USFK on Korean soil.

“The USFK has completed its Partial Furlough Implementation Process analysis for Korean national employees who will be retained to provide life, health, safety and readiness services,” USFK said in a release, adding that it is reviewing the results with the union of the Korean employees.

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link.

The furloughs are coming:

U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) issued a 30-day advance notice of a potential furlough to its Korean employees, apparently to further pressure Seoul in defense cost-sharing negotiations.

Korea and the United States have been engaged in talks over how much Seoul should pay for the upkeep of the 28,500-strong USFK under their cost-sharing deal, the Special Measures Agreement (SMA), but have yet to reach a deal. “Their loss will have an impact on readiness,” USFK commander Gen. Robert Abrams said. “Unfortunately, without an agreed upon SMA, we must continue to prepare for a potential furlough.”

Absent an agreement, the furlough will begin on April 1, it said.

The U.S. Department of Defense earlier said it will fund the salaries of key Korean workers who provide life, health, safety and other readiness services, but USFK sent the notice, as required by U.S. law, to all its nearly 9,000 Korean employees as it is still unclear who will be subject to the potential furlough, it said.“We’ve explored all options that remain within my authority to delay a potential furlough due to the SMA lapse, and we will continue to explore funding alternatives up to and even during a required furlough,” Abrams said.

Joong Ang Ilbo

Here is the latest on the US-ROK cost sharing negotiations:

The latest push from Washington came Wednesday, after the Defense Department hinted that the cost-sharing agreement might be high on the agenda, if not the highest, in the upcoming Feb. 24 meeting between Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo and his U.S. counterpart Mark Esper.

“We’ve got to work through the agreement for funding of forces, so that will obviously be a topic we will discuss,” Jonathan Hoffman, assistant to the secretary of defense for public affairs, said in a press briefing. “He’s looking forward to this meeting next week.”

When asked about the holding of joint military exercises this spring, Hoffman said he had nothing to say on the matter, which some observers say indicates the U.S. is prioritizing the cost-sharing issue in the upcoming meeting above all other matters.

Washington pressured Seoul further during the press briefing by giving details on a plan to potentially furlough 9,000 Korean workers on USFK bases.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but I continue to believe that nothing will get done on this until after April’s parliamentary elections. The Moon administration knows they are going to end up paying more and likely don’t want to give in on this issue until after the elections. If this is the case than the Korean workers on U.S. bases will be furloughed.

I don’t think a cost sharing agreement getting done until after the parliamentary elections in April. The ROK will end up paying more and they would likely rather pay more after the election. It would not look good going into an election and having the appearance of backing down to the U.S. on the cost sharing issue. In the meantime the Korean national employees on U.S. bases will be out of work beginning April 1st:

Yi Myong Hwa, who has worked for the U.S. military for nearly half her life, has been getting headaches and wakes up these days to a feeling of dread.

Yi is one of some 9,000 South Korean employees who received notice late last month that they may be forced to take unpaid leave beginning on April 1 if the United States and South Korea fail to agree on a new defense cost-sharing agreement.

“The furlough notice hit us like a bolt of lightning,” the 46-year-old fire department dispatcher told Stars and Stripes in a recent interview at her office at Camp Casey, the closest U.S. base to the border with North Korea.

“Korean employees have been working for U.S. troops and the security of the United States and South Korea,” she said. “It’s outrageous that we’re being used as a bargaining chip.”

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

Here is the latest on the status of US-ROK cost sharing talks:

 Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said Thursday that South Korea and the United States still have “big” gaps in their negotiations over Seoul’s share of the cost for stationing American troops here despite a broadening of “mutual understanding.”

Her remarks came as the two countries are preparing for the seventh round of negotiations expected to take place in Seoul this month to determine Korea’s payments for the upkeep of the 28,500-strong U.S. Forces Korea under the cost-sharing deal, called the Special Measures Agreement (SMA). 

“Though gaps are still big, the two countries have deepened mutual understanding much more, and we are in a situation where we have to make an agreement based on that understanding,” Kang said in a press briefing.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but I don’t see this getting done before the April parliamentary elections in Korea. In whatever deal that is reached it is pretty clear that Korea is going to end up paying more and that won’t look good politically for the Moon administration. It makes sense for them to wait until after the April elections to make a deal.

This is really nothing new on the U.S. President’s part; he has been very consistent on South Korea paying more for the upkeep of the US-ROK alliance. The only question at this point is how much is the increase going to be?:

U.S. President Donald Trump has publicly increased pressure on South Korea to pay more for the upkeep of 28,500 United States Forces Korea (USFK), ahead of the next round of negotiations for the ongoing defense cost-sharing talks scheduled to be held in Washington, D.C., Tuesday and Wednesday. 

The 11th Special Measures Agreement (SMA) ― as the talks are called ― between Washington and Seoul began in September last year for this year’s defense cost-sharing, but its year-end deadline has passed with the countries failing to narrow their differences. 

“These rich countries have to pay for it. South Korea gave us $500 million,” Trump said during an interview with Fox News, Friday (local time). “They’re a wealthy country. They build all your television sets, they took that away from us, they build ships, they build a lot of things. I said we’re protecting and you’ve got to pay. They paid us $500 million; they’re going to pay us a lot more.”

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

It is looking like the Trump administration’s pressure on South Korea is not only causing them to consider picking up the costs of environmental clean up for closed out U.S. bases, but buy more U.S. weapons systems as well:

In an apparent move to reduce South Korea’s financial contribution to maintaining the 28,500 United States Forces Korea troops here, the government has proposed purchasing up to $1 billion worth of U.S. weapons, officials directly involved with the issue told The Korea Times, Thursday.

“The South Korean team in the defense cost-sharing negotiations suggested a revised proposal to the United States. This included a Korea’s plan to purchase up to $1 billion worth of U.S. weapons by the end of 2020,” one official said.

“The government is seeking more inventive ways and applicable plans to reduce U.S. pressure on Seoul to pay more for defense. On a possible shopping list of U.S.-made defense products for South Korea could be advanced surveillance aircraft, along with the possible co-development of an anti-missile system between South Korean and U.S. defense contractors,” another official said.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

Here is the latest on the US-ROK cost sharing negotiations:

South Korea’s chief negotiator for the defense cost-sharing issue with the United States dismissed speculations of a possible withdrawal of the United States Forces Korea (USFK) from South Korea.

“The possible USFK withdrawal from South Korea wasn’t an issue,” South Korean official Jeong Eun-bo told reporters after closing the fourth round of defense cost negotiations with his U.S counterpart at the State Department, Washington D.C., Wednesday morning (KST).

Jeong added he and his U.S. counterpart didn’t delve into the specifics of recent remarks made by U.S. President Donald Trump in London regarding the fate of the USFK. About 28,500 U.S. troops are currently stationed in South Korea. 

Korea Times

Here is what President Trump had to say recently about the US-ROK alliance:

In London, Trump, who attended an event to mark the 70th anniversary of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), said it’s up for debate whether maintaining the USFK is in Washington’s national security interest. “It can be debated and I can go either way and make arguments both ways,” Trump told reporters.

Not surprisingly, the U.S. president asked South Korea to make fairer financial contributions and claimed he was able to extract an additional $500 million from Seoul last year for U.S. “protection,” adding Washington wants additional commitments.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.