US considering pulling some troops from South Korea, WSJ reports

The U.S. denied a media report that Washington is reviewing a proposal to withdraw some of its forces stationed in South Korea.

The U.S. remains firmly committed to the defense of South Korea, and “we look forward to working with the incoming government officials to maintain and strengthen our iron clad alliance,” Chief Pentagon Spokesperson Sean Parnell, said in a statement. South Korea will elect a new president on June 3.

Reports of a reduction of U.S. troops in South Korea are “not true,” the statement added.

Earlier, South Korea’s defense ministry also said there have been no discussions with the U.S. over a possible pullback of American troops stationed in the country.

The comments come after the Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, reported that the proposal could result in the removal of about 4,500 American troops based in South Korea. Such a move risks stirring security concerns in the divided Korean peninsula.

South Korea’s defense ministry said there has been “absolutely no discussion” with the U.S. regarding a potential U.S. troop withdrawal. U.S. troops stationed in South Korea are a core part of the two countries’ alliance, helping to deter North Korea from invading or making provocations while contributing to peace and stability in the region, the ministry said in a text message to reporters.

One of the options under discussion includes relocating some of the 28,500 U.S. troops in South Korea to other locations in the Indo-Pacific region, including Guam, the report said. The proposal has not reached U.S. President Donald Trump’s desk yet and is one of several ideas being discussed by senior officials conducting the review, the report said.

Trump has pushed U.S. allies to step up military spending in return for deploying American troops in conflict zones. In October, just before winning the presidential election, Trump said South Korea would pay billions of dollars more every year to host U.S. troops if he were in the White House and called the long-time U.S. ally a “money machine.”

Trump made those remarks less than two weeks after the U.S. and South Korea reached a new five-year cost-sharing deal for hosting American forces on the divided peninsula. Under the agreement, South Korea will raise its share of the costs to $1.1 billion in 2026, up 8.3% compared with this year.

Trump said in April that he discussed trade deficit, shipbuilding cooperation, the Alaska pipeline project and defense cost sharing during his phone call with Korea’s then Acting President Han Duck-soo.