<Anchor> The
Korea-US defense cost share negotiations have been virtually concluded.
During the Trump administration, negotiations that had been sluggish for more than a year and a half due to excessive demands for increased defense costs were in the final stage.
Now only the final signature remains.
It is known that the two sides have agreed to a five-year multi-year contract.
Correspondent Yunsoo Kim delivers from Washington.
<Reporter> The
delegation of the ROK-US defense cost-sharing negotiations announced that as a result of the 11th ROK-US special defense cost-sharing agreement negotiations, a principled agreement was reached.
It has been 18 months since the first negotiations began in September 2019.
The results of the negotiations, such as the first year increase rate and the annual increase rate, are not known, but it is said that the contract period agreed to a five-year multi-year contract until 2026, as requested by the Korean delegation.
Earlier, the Wall Street Journal and other US media reported that the two sides had approached opinions on the contents of a 13% increase in the first year and a multi-year contract of around five years.
Ambassador Eun-bo Chung and other South Korean negotiating delegations arrived in Washington on the 5th and resumed face-to-face negotiations with the US after a year.
Initially, only one meeting was scheduled, but the two sides extended the meeting by one more day, focusing on coordinating last-minute issues.
The negotiating delegation plans to return to Korea tomorrow (9th) and go ahead after completing the reporting process.
As US Secretary of State Blincoln and Secretary of Defense Austin are promoting their visit to Korea on the 17th, there is a possibility that there will be a visit at this time.
With the conclusion of defense cost negotiations, which have led to controversy about the reduction of US troops in Korea, the biden government's policy to strengthen the ROK-US alliance is being evaluated as the first button.