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It is known that the final settlement is imminent because the negotiations on the ROK-US defense contribution have been reached on the practical line. The large-scale unpaid leave of the USFK Korean workers is expected to be resolved soon, but an official announcement has not yet been released.

This is Kim Tae-hoon, a defense journalist.

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After going to the 7th negotiations in Los Angeles, the delegation of South Korea's self-contained defense charges, the negotiating representative of Korea, said through a video message yesterday (31st) that the negotiations are to be over.

[Jung Eun-bo / Korea-US Defense Expenses Ambassador: We are in the final stage of coordination to settle the negotiations.]

It was confirmed that the US-ROK agreed on the amount of contributions and the validity period of the negotiations, which were the biggest obstacles to the negotiations.

The U.S. is said to have settled for the first 5 trillion won and then retreated to the 4 trillion won, but government sources say they know it has been settled at a much lower price.

The validity period for the negotiations is said to have been accepted by the US, five years, instead of the one that the United States claims.

The negotiations on defense contributions that began in September last year have ended practically, and only the final approval process of the two leaders is left.

However, as of yet, there have been no official announcements, so 4,000 of the 8,600 South Korean workers in the USFK began to take unpaid leave from today.

USFK Commander Robert Abrams said unpaid leave was not what he expected and hoped for, and today is a heartbreaking day.

The Defense Ministry said it is taking measures to swiftly resolve the unpaid leave situation.