U.S. Walks Out of Military Cost-Sharing Talks With South Korea

Negotiations halted Tuesday as U.S. seeks five-fold increase
Latest strain on alliance key to countering China, North Korea

US soldiers look at a performance of South Korea’s aerobatic team of T-50 jets at US Osan Air Base, Sept. 20.Photographer: Jung Yeon-je/AFP via Getty Images

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By Jihye Lee

November 19, 2019 at 5:30 AM UTC

Updated on

November 19, 2019 at 8:16 AM UTC

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The U.S. walked out of military cost-sharing talks with South Korea, after the key American ally balked at President Donald Trump’s demands for a five-fold funding increase.

The chief U.S. negotiator, James DeHart, said that the American side cut short talks planned for Tuesday in Seoul because the South Koreans “were not responsive to our request for fair and equitable burden-sharing.” The South Korean foreign ministry said it had expected to discuss “an acceptable range for both counterparts” based on past cost-sharing discussions.