US House approves annual defense policy bill restricting USFK troop reduction

Apache helicopters at Camp Humphreys, a sprawling U.S. base in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province / Yonhap

The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday passed an annual defense policy bill that includes a measure to restrict the government from unilaterally reducing the current troop level of the 28,500-strong U.S. Forces Korea (USFK).

The lower chamber approved the National Defense Authorization Act for the next fiscal year — from October this year to September next year — in a 312-112 vote, sending it to the Senate where the bill is expected to get bipartisan support.

The bill will become law after President Donald Trump signs it following the Senate approval.

The bill says that amounts authorized under the act may not be obligated or expended to reduce U.S. troops in Korea, though it leaves open the door for the use of the funds following the certification that the USFK troop reduction is in the U.S. national security interest, and that the action is being undertaken only after appropriate consultations with allies, including Korea.

Also without such a certification, funds allocated under the act may not be expended to complete the transition of wartime operational control from the United States to Korea in a manner that deviates from a bilateral agreement, the bill says.

The measure to restrict the USFK troop drawdown reappeared in the bill for the first time in five years. It was included in the NDAA during the first Trump administration in a move to help prevent a unilateral troop drawdown.

The bill authorizes $901 billion in military spending for the upcoming fiscal year.

Congress passes it each year to set defense policy and funding priorities and give guidance on a range of key security matters.