The president's office stated on the 25th (local time) that President Donald Trump requested a 'transfer of ownership of the U.S. Forces Korea site' during a summit with President Lee Jae-myung, noting, "The U.S. Forces Korea site is given to be used freely, not on a lease, and the concept of rent(expense) does not apply." They added, "We need to understand more about the background of President Trump's statement." Because it is a matter of a grant, not a lease, it is not subject to a 'transfer of ownership.'

Chief of Staff to the President Kang Hoon (from left), National Security Director Wi Sung-lak, and Policy Director Kim Yong-beom provide a briefing regarding the summit between President Lee Jae-myung and U.S. President Donald Trump at a hotel arranged by the Korean Press Center in Washington, D.C. on the 25th (local time). /Courtesy of Yonhap News Agency

Wi Sung-lac, Deputy Minister for National Security, attending the Korea-U.S. summit, mentioned at a press briefing at the Washington D.C. press center, "According to the SOFA agreement, the U.S. forces use the site during which we provide the grant. We need to understand what was meant before responding to the media. The agreement states it grants facilities and zones, hence it is not a concept of giving and receiving ownership."

According to Article 4 of the Korea-U.S. Mutual Defense Treaty and Article 2 of the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), Korea grants facilities and sites to the U.S. Forces Korea. These facilities and sites are properties owned by Korea, and thus the documented 'grant' implies that Korea is giving the right to use the facilities and sites to the U.S. Forces Korea.

If, as Trump stated, a 'lease agreement' was in place, the U.S. would need to pay a fee for using the U.S. Forces Korea facilities and sites. However, in practice, the U.S. forces use Korean real estate for free. Additionally, the operation and maintenance costs are shared between Korea and the United States.

Earlier, President Trump, when asked by reporters whether he was considering reducing U.S. Forces Korea before the summit with President Lee in the Oval Office, replied, "I don't want to say that now, because we are friends." He added, "One of the things I want to do is to request ownership of the land where we have a large fort in Korea."

President Trump said, "We spent a tremendous amount of money building bases, and although Korea contributed, I want that (ownership). We can get rid of the lease agreement and secure ownership of the land where we have a massive military stationed." He also noted, "More than 40,000 U.S. troops are stationed in Korea." However, the current size of U.S. Forces Korea is about 28,500.

President Lee Jae-myung and U.S. President Donald Trump are shaking hands during the summit at the White House in Washington, D.C. on the 25th (local time). /Courtesy of Yonhap News Agency

◇"Not in terms of defense costs but in the narrow sense of defense cost sharing (SMA), no discussions"

The president's office clarified that there was no discussion regarding an 'increase in Korea's defense cost sharing' during the summit. Deputy Minister Wi stated, "We need to distinguish whether we view defense costs in a narrow or broad sense," categorizing the narrow sense as the 12th Special Measures Agreement (SMA) and the broad sense as defense. He noted, "To have precise discussions, it should be limited to the SMA, and there has been no discussion to reopen and increase this until today."

In October last year, Korea and the U.S. government under Joe Biden signed a Special Measures Agreement for defense cost sharing, setting ▲ next year's contribution at 1.5192 trillion won and ▲ increasing it annually for the next four years by the consumer price index increase rate. Deputy Minister Wi stated, "Simply, the U.S. is talking about 'Korean defense budget increases.' There could be defense capability enhancements or weapon purchases, but these are unrelated to the SMA."

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