By Lee Tae-hoon
South Korea’s financial contribution to cover the cost of stationing American troops here is significantly underestimated compared to Washington’s official estimates, senior officials said Wednesday.
“The United States has not disclosed how much Seoul’s contribution accounts for the non-personnel stationing costs (NPSC) of the U.S. Forces in Korea (USFK), except for when Gen. Walter Sharp, the then USFK commander nominee, said Korea’s contribution represents 43 percent at his congressional confirmation hearing in April 2008,” a government official said.
“However, I believe Seoul has been shouldering over 50 percent of the NPSC, possibly more than 60 percent.”
Korea provided 725.5 billion won ($644 million) to the USFK in 2007 and agreed in 2008 to increase its level of financial assistance in accordance with a rise in the consumer price index until 2013.
Korea’s cost sharing rose to 812.5 billion won last year, but the USFK has been reluctant to reveal details of its spending, and how much that amount accounts for the total cost for the stationing of U.S. troops here.
“Don’t get too excited arguing about small parts of small amounts,” David Sedney, then deputy assistant secretary of defense for East Asia, said at the 17th Security Policy Initiative (SPI) talks in Seoul on April 8, 2008 when Seoul requested the provision of detailed information on USFK expenditure.
In this regard, the Ministry of National Defense and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, responsible for negotiations over the cost sharing, told The Korea Times in a written reply that Seoul does not accept Washington’s claim that its contribution accounts for less than 50 percent of the NPSC.
“The elements and amounts of the NPSC are calculated in accordance with Washington’s own rules for the sake of reporting it to the U.S. Congress,” it said. “As the two allies have yet to reach an agreement on how to calculate the costs, Seoul does not recognize the U.S. government’s NPSC estimates.”
A senior defense official said the USFK has failed to spend about 1 trillion won that Korea contributed to the USFK as part of the NPSC since 2002 due to delays in its envisioned construction projects.
“Seoul has no choice but to provide more than 800 billion won a year as agreed in 2008,” he said.
“However, Korea has been giving building materials instead of cash to the USFK over the past few years for some 30 percent of its NPSC that Washington spends for the construction of USFK military facilities.”
He said the two allies agreed on the measure to prevent USFK’s possible diversion of NPSC.
The official said the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses, a state-funded think tank, has been analyzing the USFK’s expenditure in preparation for renegotiations of the NPSC with Washington, which is slated for early next year.
“Korea’s stance is firm that it can only increase its burden sharing for the USFK by no more than 3.5 percent or 4 percent a year,” he said.
The Korea Times requested the USFK to provide detailed information of its budget and how much Korea’s contribution represents in its total spending, but no explanation was provided.