청, NSC Standing Committee Meeting "Review of Korea-US Defense Cost-Sharing Negotiations... Efforts for Early Agreement"

Cheong Wa Dae Panorama / Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Son Sunhee] On the afternoon of the 2nd, the Blue House held a National Security Council (NSC) Standing Committee meeting chaired by National Security Office Director Chung Eui-yong to review the status of the defense cost-sharing negotiations between South Korea and the United States and announced that efforts to reach an early agreement would continue.

It was reported that the two countries have made progress at the working-level regarding the actual defense cost-sharing negotiations. There are also observations that an announcement of the negotiation settlement is imminent. Jeong Eun-bo, the South Korea-U.S. defense cost-sharing negotiation representative, said on the 31st of last month, "Since considerable consensus has been reached, we expect a final agreement soon."

However, in light of the NSC meeting results on that day, it appears that detailed coordination between the two governments is still necessary.

The Blue House also stated, "The standing committee members discussed specific ways for South Korea to contribute to overcoming crises in various countries, considering that many countries are requesting to share our quarantine experience and support quarantine supplies due to the global spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19)."

In particular, regarding the G20 special video summit held on the 26th of last month, it added that international cooperation would be further strengthened to ensure that follow-up measures are implemented without any setbacks.