South Korea's defense ministry said Friday that it held no discussions with Washington regarding the withdrawal of some United States Forces Korea (USFK) troops stationed in the country.
The ministry was responding to a report by the Wall Street Journal that claimed that the US was considering scaling back the number of its troops in South Korea by some 4,500 soldiers. There are about 28,500 US troops stationed in the Asian country, a number that has been maintained since 2008.
"As the core strength of the South Korea-US alliance, the USFK, alongside our military, has contributed to the peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula and in the region by maintaining a firm combined defense posture and deterring North Korea's invasion and provocation," the defense ministry was quoted as having said by Yonhap. "We will continue to cooperate with the US side to advance in such a direction," the ministry stressed.
