Trump wants to own S. Korean's land of US army bases
(MENAFN) US President Donald Trump expressed interest in acquiring ownership of the land housing American military bases in South Korea, rather than continuing to lease it.
Speaking alongside South Korea’s new president, Lee Jae-myung, on Monday, Trump highlighted the extensive US investment in infrastructure on the Korean Peninsula and the presence of “over 40,000 troops,” while noting that the land beneath these facilities remains leased from Seoul.
“Maybe one of the things I’d like to do is ask them to give us ownership of the land where we have the big fort,” he said. “I would like to see if we could get rid of the lease and get ownership of the land where we have a massive military base.”
Trump did not specify which base he was referring to. The largest US facility in South Korea, Camp Humphreys, was completed in 2018 following a decade-long relocation project funded by both nations. US overseas bases are generally operated under long-term lease agreements and Status of Forces treaties, granting operational control to the US while maintaining formal sovereignty for the host country.
Estimates place the number of American troops in South Korea at roughly 28,500, making it one of the largest US military presences abroad after Japan and Germany. Trump claimed that during his previous term, Seoul had agreed to cover the costs of maintaining US troops, but that President Joe Biden reversed the arrangement. “We were getting paid billions of dollars. But then Biden ended that for whatever reason,” Trump said, calling it “unbelievable.”
Trump’s statements align with his long-held position that US allies should contribute more for American “protection,” whether through direct payments, higher defense spending, or expanded economic engagement with Washington.
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