Trump urges S. Korea to ‘pick up all expenses’ for U.S. military presence

U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said Wednesday that South Korea and other U.S. allies should pay for all costs related to keeping U.S. troops in their countries.

Trump made the remark in an interview with CNN in a response to a question about his opinion on new U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) Commander Vincent Brooks’ Senate testimony that South Korea shoulders about half of the cost of U.S. military presence in the country. "Why not a 100 percent?" Trump asked back. Even before he became the Republic presidential candidate, he suggested that U.S. troops be pulled out if allies refuse to pay more. However, it was the first time that he specifically mentioned that they should cover all the expenses.

Noting that South Korea, Japan and Germany should “pick up all the expenses,” he asked, “Why are we paying for this?” Trump also said the U.S. should be “prepared to walk” unless allies pay more. In that case, South Korea should defend itself “against North Korea (where) we have a maniac,” he said. “If they don’t take care of us properly, if they don’t respect us enough to take care of us properly, then you know what’s going to have to happen … It’s very simple. They’re going to have to defend themselves,” he said.

Some experts paid attention to the Trump camp’s explanation that he made the remarks with the NATO in mind rather than South Korea. However, some others point out that Seoul should draw up a strategy to respond to the “America First” sentiment, which will likely become a major issue in the U.S. presidential race.

“Judging from the current U.S. domestic political situation, whoever becomes president will likely demand that Seoul pay more,” said Kim Hyun-wook, a professor at the Korea National Diplomatic Academy. “The USFK’s withdrawal is unlikely but Seoul should be prepared for its restructuring including a partial pullout.”

Seoul’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has begun to expand its contacts with the Trump camp and U.S. lawmakers supporting him including Senator Jeff Sessions and members of the Korea Caucus, a group of U.S. legislators with close ties to Korea. However, doing so is not easy because even foreign affairs and security experts within the Republican Party are unfamiliar with Trump’s advisors. A diplomatic source said, “Once Trump’s presidential campaign camp is fully set up, its “diplomacy brain” will be beefed up. We are preparing for networking under such a scenario.”

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