Trump: US troops withdrawal from South Korea ‘not on table’ in Hanoi meeting with Kim
US President Donald Trump has ruled out reducing the number of American troops in South Korea as part of a deal to be discussed during his upcoming summit with North Korea leader Kim Jong-un.
"No, it's not. That is not one of the things on the table," Trump said at a White House event on Friday when asked if he would consider pulling some of the 28,500 troops from South Korea.
Trump and Kim are scheduled to meet in the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi on February 27 and 28.
Senior US officials had said on Thursday the two sides would not discuss withdrawing US troops from the Korean Peninsula and would instead focus on seeking a common understanding about denuclearization.
The United States has stationed some 28,500 American troops in South Korea since the 1950-53 Korean War.
Washington has scaled back military exercises in South Korea over the past year as part of efforts to expedite talks aimed at dismantling the North's nuclear weapon and ballistic missile programs.
Trump and Kim reached a vague denuclearization agreement in their first summit in Singapore last June but the ensuing talks between Washington and Pyongyang seem to have had little progress since then.
Kim is demanding a solid guarantee of its security and the removal of Washington’s nuclear umbrella protecting allies South Korea and Japan in exchange for denuclearization.
Pyongyang has also complained about continued US and UN sanctions despite its commitment to diplomatic efforts, calling them a “source of mistrust.” The US, however, says any sanctions relief would be possible only after the complete and irreversible denuclearization.
The North has denounced the Trump administration’s "gangster-like behavior," accusing Washington of betraying the spirit of the June summit by making unilateral demands while keeping the sanctions in place.
South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in said on Tuesday that Seoul was ready to resume inter-Korean cooperation as a “concession” if it helped the denuclearization of its northern neighbor.
The US insists that UN sanctions must remain in place until North Korea gives up its weapons, while Pyongyang wants them immediately eased.
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