South Korea and the U.S. will reach agreement on sharing the cost of U.S. troops in the country if Donald Trump is elected president, even though he is likely to pressure Europe to increase defence spending, a former Trump security adviser said.
During his first presidency Trump accused Seoul of "free-riding" on U.S. military might, with more than 28,000 American troops stationed in South Korea as part of efforts to deter its nuclear-armed neighbour North Korea.
The allies are in talks for a new U.S. troop deal, so-called 12th Special Measures Agreement (SMA), to take effect in 2026. South Korean media has said the aim was for an agreement before the November U.S. presidential election.
"I think that the SMA talks will continue and will reach a settlement that both sides will be content with, when Trump comes to office," Fred Fleitz, a senior National Security Council official during the Trump administration, said in Seoul on Tuesday.
Fleitz said he believed if Trump was elected he would likely pressure European allies to spend more on defence, but not South Korea, citing the "current environment of increased threats from North Korea, from China" as a reason.
Fleitz, who is visiting Seoul for meetings with South Korean researchers and officials including a vice foreign minister, said he was not speaking for Trump and instead offering his own assessment.
Another round of SMA negotiations is set to take place this week in Seoul, according to South Korea's foreign ministry.
Fleitz, vice chair at the America First Policy Institute, a U.S. thinktank, also said he believed Trump would try to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un again in his second presidency.
"I think that the Trump administration has to re-engage Kim," he said, expecting "intensive consultations with Japan and South Korea, probably Taiwan among U.S. allies", to come before a meeting with the North's leader.
Between 2018 and 2019, Trump and Kim met three times in what yielded powerful images but few concrete steps for North Korea's denuclearisation.
His advice for the potential Trump-Kim meeting should be on conditions that North Korea should stop supplying weapons to Russia, Fleitz added.
"I think there will be tough policies against China and North Korea. But I also think there will be dialogue," he said.
© (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2024.
12 Comments
JJE
Important to note Fred Fleitz was one of the guys behind the template of that possible peace-negotiation plan this very same institute outlined a week or two ago.
His potential role and sway in a now very possible upcoming second Trump administration is far from clear.
theFu
But Trump is a convicted felon - 34 counts. Only a crazy person would vote for a convicted felon. And that's just the beginning. His lawyers have been delaying all the other trials for years now. If he wasn't guilty, he'd want his months in court to be handled and over - though I doubt he won't get jail time - he seems to believe it.
"Project 2025" is another set of considerations for every American to consider. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-seeks-disavow-project-2025-despite-ties-conservative-group-2024-07-05/ 6 close Trump advisors were in on the creation of that 900+ pg document to destroy the USgovt. Trump claims to know nothing about, but he's a proven liar, so I don't believe him.
In Korea, just put a price tag on the number of troops stationed there and let SK decide how much American blood is enough to be spilled for protection and to have American military equipment close to SK for when NK invades without warning.
The former-liar-in- chef said about the Project 2025 group,
30,001 lies from him now.
bass4funk
I think the Dems should just give that one up, no one is listening anymore, in fact, Trump numbers have been moving up slightly, nowhere near down. If I were a Democrat especially one working in this administration, I would waste less time focusing obsessively about Trump and worrying how to keep my base from bailing on me. That ship sailed a long time ago. I’ll say it again, liberals should listen to one of the smartest liberals around: James Carville and stop putting your eggs in one basket.
OssanAmerica
Trump has displayed a tendency to worship our enemies and hurt our allies during his 2016-2020 term throwing our alliances formed and in place for 80 years into turmoil. There is nothing to indicate that his policies would be any different if he becomes potus again. The world today in 2024 is in a global crisis that requires a US leader with a sound mind, not convicted felon with chronic lying disorder.
bass4funk
I think he wants to reach a mutual understanding that each country is doing what they need to do for their best interest. Most Americans don’t want to die for other nations particularly if we don’t have a clear objective or a strong military leadership.
He’ll probably double-down on them.
That is why he is leading in the polls
If we focus on that then we can’t vote for anyone and o mean, anyone. The main thing that people want is an American first president and not a globalist one.
wallace
Latest polls Biden 43% Trump 46%
https://emersoncollegepolling.com/july-2024-national-poll-trump-46-biden-43/
Biden 40% Trump 39%
https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/polls/president-general/2024/national/
Wagyu
Report by Forbes today with some more detail.
Biden Vs. Trump 2024 Election Polls: Trump’s Lead Widens In Almost Every Post-Debate Survey
Former President Donald Trump leads President Joe Biden in 11 of 12 national surveys taken after their consequential June 27 debate, according to Real Clear Politics’ poll tracker—though surveys are split on whether potential Biden replacements would outperform the president against Trump.Key Facts
Trump leads Biden by 3.3 points in Real Clear Politics’ poll tracker, a 1.8-point swing in Trump’s favor since the debate, and is up by 1.6 points in FiveThirtyEight’s poll tracker.Trump is up by three points over Biden in the latest poll by Emerson College, taken July 7-8, and leads by two in Morning Consult’s weekly survey.
Trump leads Biden by six points in a New York Times/Siena College survey conducted Friday to Tuesday, a three-point swing in Trump’s favor since a poll a week earlier, and Trump’s widest lead in any poll by the groups since he launched his first presidential campaign in 2015.
A Wall Street Journal survey conducted after the debate also found Biden trails Trump by six points, Trump’s widest lead over Biden in Journal surveys dating to 2021 in a two-way matchup, and a four-point increase in Trump’s lead since February.
A CBS/YouGov post-debate poll taken in the seven crucial battleground states likely to determine the winner of the election found Trump leads Biden by three points, after trailing him by one point last month.
starpunk
Remember, this Fuehrer kissed up to Kimmy boy. And you can't believe anything trump says. Anybody who supports, endorses or even believes the lies this uncivilized sexually deviant criminal traitor says is weak. No hope for them.
Jimizo
He’s an appalling candidate - a track record of not delivering, clearly in mental decline, a thundering ignoramus, a pathological liar, a convicted felon and a petty and childish temperament.
Any decent candidate should be thrashing this ridiculous person.
Blame the Democrats for not having a candidate capable of thrashing him at the moment.
Could change?
bass4funk
He tried, you have to like the guy, but maybe what we have been doing for 50 years just hasn’t quite worked out, so what’s wrong with trying something different? Don’t have to like the person, but if both sides can come up with a lasting solution that can keep the peace, why not try, especially if it can prevent an unnecessary war.
Then you must hate this administration because they win the prize in that regard.
72 million and growing are weak? uh, ok, I can live with that.
Speaking of this administration….
zibala
Well, if you consider that under Trump's presidency there was no Russia invading Ukraine, gas and food prices were 20-30% lower than now, and Hispanics, Asians, Blacks, and Women all were making incomes higher than ever before in the US, then I guess we could say the US and Ukraine were in a much better place.
Jimizo
You find those defending Trump the man are as dishonest as he is - the types making transparently ridiculous claims of flying private, running multiple companies, having multiple degrees in the sciences, winning bets that don’t exist, spamming social media with multiple accounts etc.
They must see a kindred spirit.
They are a waste of space.
There are those who vote Trump who see him as the appalling character he is but see him as better than the alternative.
The fact decent, worthwhile people see Trump as better than the alternative is something the Democrats have to carry blame for.