2026 South Korea-US Military Defense Cost Sharing Agreement Reached at 1.5192 Trillion Won

Special Agreement Valid from 2026 to 2030 Signed
Defense Cost-Sharing Contributions Capped at 5% Annual Increase
Korean Government to Submit Ratification Consent to National Assembly

The South Korean government has reached an early agreement on the defense cost-sharing amount for the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) for 2026, set at 1.5192 trillion won. This amount represents an 8.3% increase compared to the defense cost-sharing expenditure for next year (2025).

On the 4th, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that South Korea and the U.S. finalized negotiations at the recently held 8th meeting for the conclusion of the 12th Special Measures Agreement (SMA) on defense cost-sharing. The validity period of this special agreement is five years, from 2026 to 2030. The total amount for the first year, 2026, is 1.5192 trillion won, which is an 8.3% increase compared to the total of 1.4028 trillion won in 2025.

Notably, from 2027 to 2030, the defense cost-sharing amount will reflect the consumer price index (CPI) increase rate in the 2% range, rather than the current defense budget growth rate. The CPI increase rate of the year before the previous year will be applied to the previous year's defense cost-sharing amount, with an annual increase cap set at no more than 5%.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained that this agreement "reintroduces the consumer price index and a cap on the annual increase rate to relatively reduce the growth rate of the defense cost-sharing amount and to prevent a sudden increase in the cost-sharing amount in case of unexpected economic situations."

Additionally, South Korea and the U.S. specified that repair and maintenance services funded by the defense cost-sharing will apply only to assets stationed on the Korean Peninsula, and agreed to abolish support for maintenance of assets outside the region, which had been conducted until now. Furthermore, the construction management fee used by the South Korean Ministry of National Defense will be increased from 3% to 5.1% of the in-kind military construction project costs to enhance the quality and safety management of military construction projects.

This agreement will be formally signed once the South Korean government completes domestic procedures for the agreement, and a ratification proposal will be submitted to the National Assembly. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated, "South Korea and the U.S. reached a reasonable result relatively quickly," reflecting the determination of both countries to ensure stable stationing conditions for the USFK and to further strengthen the combined defense posture.