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US Secretary of Defense has drawn a line that the US military has not ordered the withdrawal of US troops from the United States in relation to the recent reduction of USFK. However, there is room for continued review of US military relocation worldwide.

This is Correspondent Correspondent Kim Yun-soo of Washington.

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US Secretary of Defense Esper expressed his stance on the recent withdrawal of US troops from South Korea during a video seminar at the Think Tank International Strategy Research Institute.

Mr. Esper first wrote that he had never ordered the withdrawal of troops from Korea.

[Esper/US Defense Secretary: I have never ordered the withdrawal of troops from the Korean Peninsula. I would like to say that I have made it clear that I will implement the'National Defense Strategy' since I took office.] The

National Defense Strategy refers to the relocation and reallocation of US troops stationed overseas, which continues to be reviewed, added Esper.

We will not cut the USFK at the moment, but this means that the issue of USFK reductions remains to be considered in the optimization of US deployments worldwide.

Earlier on the 17th, the US Daily Wall Street Journal reported that the US Department of Defense had offered the USFK reduction options to the White House.

The US Congress also expressed bipartisan opposition that a reduction in US forces in South Korea would result in harm to American security and world peace.

However, as President Trump made a pledge to reduce US troops stationed overseas four years ago, there are many observations that there is a possibility of linking defense costs negotiations and USFK reduction issues for reelection purposes at any time.