S. Korea faces defense hike

[Anchor]

Countries in Asia, including South Korea, are being told by the U.S. Department of Defense that they should spend up to 5% of their GDP on defense.

Currently, our defense budget is about 60 trillion won, which means we would need to increase it to over 130 trillion won.

First, reporter Hong Jin-ah has the story.

[Report]

The U.S., which has pressured its European allies to spend 5% of their GDP on defense, has now presented the same bill to South Korea.

In a statement, the U.S. Department of Defense said, "Europe is setting a global standard for Asian allies," and that "the standard is to spend 5% of GDP on defense."

South Korea has allocated 61 trillion won for defense this year, which is about 2.3% of its GDP.

According to the U.S. standard, this needs to be increased to over 130 trillion won, more than double.

The U.S. Department of Defense argued that increasing defense spending is reasonable considering the threats from China and North Korea.

[Pete Hegseth/U.S. Secretary of Defense: "It's only fair that our allies and partners do their part. We cannot want their security more than they do."]

If a South Korea-U.S. summit takes place at the NATO meeting next week, the pressure for increased defense spending may come to the forefront.

President Trump is also insisting that South Korea significantly increase its share of the costs for the U.S. military presence in South Korea.

[Donald Trump/U.S. President: "South Korea has been ripping us off. We pay for their military. They take advantage of us on trade."]

The demand for increased defense spending could also be linked to demands for purchasing more U.S. weapons.

If the U.S. connects this issue to the reduction of U.S. troops in South Korea, South Korea's options will become even more limited.

This is KBS News, Hong Jin-ah.