USFK Denies Cut of Troops in S.Korea

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, June 26, 2003

USFK Denies Cut of Troops in S.Korea

The Public Affair Office of the United States Forces Korea (USFK) on Thursday afternoon denied the report that there would be some reduction of the US troops stationed in South Korea.

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The Public Affair Office of the United States Forces Korea (USFK) on Thursday afternoon denied the report that there would be some reduction of the US troops stationed in South Korea.

"General Campbell mentioned the redeployment of US Yoonsan Basein Seoul and the US 2nd Infantry Division, but he did not comment on any US troops' reduction today," Lee Ferguson of the US military office told Xinhua in a telephone interview.

South Korean national news agency reported earlier that in a seminar Lt. Gen. Charles Campbell, commander of the US Eighth Army,indicated that with the relocation of US units "some reduction in force" would be conducted.

An officer of the South Korean Defense Ministry Public Affair Office also told Xinhua the "report is inaccurate."

The decrease of US troops here is a sensitive matter in South Korea. Since the end of the Korea War (1950-1953), the United States has been stationed some 37,000 troops here as deterrence against foreign attacks.

Up to now, the two military allies have held two rounds of talks under the title of "Future of the Alliance Policy Initiative," the core of which is the realignment of bilateral military alliance.

The two countries have agreed to conduct relocation of US military bases by two phases, the Yoonsan garrison, the USFK's headquarters in South Korea, and the 2nd Infantry Division deployed now near the inter-Korea border will be moved to southernarea of Seoul in Osan and Pyeongtaek in Gyeonggi Province.

But the timing of such redeployment has not been fixed. South Korea hopes the relocation would be carried on after the resolution of the nuclear issue of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

Previously, South Korean media also reported that US military officials, including Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, had hintedat the possibility that some of the 37,000 American troops stationed here could be reduced. But both the South Korean government and the USFK denied such reports.

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