US to Expand Items for War Reserves for Sales
By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter
The United States has agreed to expand its list of war reserve ammunition items for sale to South Korea, the Ministry of National Defense said Tuesday.
Under the War Reserve Stocks for Allies (WRSA)-Korea program, the United States has maintained about 600,000 tons of war reserves worth $3 billion to $5 billion, including munitions, tanks, artillery, bombs and mortars, in South Korea for use in case of conflict on the peninsula since 1982.
The stockpiles account for about 60 percent of the ammunition needed for the first 60 days in the event of a war before U.S. reinforcement troops arrive on the peninsula. South Korea's armed forces currently only have 10 days' worth.
The program was terminated in 2006 and the U.S. Department of Defense is required to sell the ammunition to South Korea by 2008 under the WRSA termination law.
Defense officials of Seoul and Washington have held four rounds of talks on the sale of war stocks. The latest round were held at the U.S. Pacific Command in Hawaii, Feb. 11-14, ministry officials said.
``The U.S. said it will give South Korea what it needs even if the items were previously excluded from a list of war stocks for sale,'' a ministry spokesman told reporters.
During the Hawaii talks, the United States agreed to sell 105-mm tank ammunition, MK84 bombs and spare parts for UH-1H helicopters, which had been withheld from the list of items, he said.
Seoul will present a list of items it wants to Washington before the end of next month, he said, adding the two sides will also exchange their own price tags for the items before beginning full-scale price negotiations.
The United States wants to sell the war stocks at ``fair market value,'' while South Korea is reluctant to accept the offer, citing most of the ammunition is outdated, having been stored for more than 20 years.
A report of the general counsel at the Pentagon in late 2004 said Washington would save $1.2 billion if all WRSA items were handed over to South Korea.
About 28,000 U.S. troops are stationed here as a deterrent against North Korea.