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South Korea and the U.S. were unable to narrow their differences over who should pay what for the upkeep of the U.S. Forces Korea in a round of talks on the matter that started Wednesday.
The U.S. says Korea should pay a bigger share than before since it is now the 10th largest economy in the world, but Seoul proposed paying even less than this year. Washington reportedly complained that the W680 billion (US$1=W960) on offer barely covers one-third of the total cost. "The U.S. Congress has passed a directive to the administration that says countries where U.S. troops are stationed should pay 75 percent of the upkeep,¡± a government official said. "The U.S. believes Korea isn¡¯t even paying 40 percent.¡±
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Korean and U.S. officials discuss their respective share in paying for the upkeep of the U.S. Forces Korea at the Foreign Ministry on Wednesday./Yonhap
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That would suggest the U.S. is asking for W1.3 trillion. The government official says there is room for debate about what the cost of stationing the troops here will be, adding the U.S. had sometimes under-calculated the amount Korea is actually putting in.
Korea also dislikes Washington¡¯s idea of negotiating a long-term contract. Since the USFK will be reduced by 12,500 troops by 2008 and the cost of relocating U.S. bases here is being handled separately, it is impossible to negotiate that far into the future, Seoul believes.
The government official said a compromise will not be easy given the way negotiations are progressing. "It looks as if we are in for several additional negotiations," he added. Last year's negotiations, too, were anything but smooth, and a deal was reached way past the deadline in April last year. That agreement cut Korea's contribution for 2005-06 down 8.9 percent from where it previously stood, the first time Korea's share was reduced since it started contributing to force upkeep in 1991.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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