South Korea's defence ministry says no talks held with US on troop withdrawal

South Korea's defence ministry said on Friday Seoul and Washington had not had discussions about the withdrawal of some US troops stationed in the country.

The ministry made the comment in response to a report by the Wall Street Journal that said the US was considering pulling out about 4,500 troops from South Korea.

One option being considered was to relocate some of the troops to other locations in the Indo-Pacific region including Guam, according to the report, which cited unnamed US military officials.

There are 28,500 US troops stationed in South Korea.

South Korea would continue co-operation with the US to maintain a strong combined defence posture to deter North Korea, Seoul's defence ministry said.

Seoul and Washington agreed on a five-year plan on defence cost sharing last year but US President Donald Trump has signalled the cost of the US military presence could be up for discussion in ongoing trade negotiations with Seoul.

South Korean officials have so far maintained the position that defence costs are a separate matter from the trade talks.

The Asian country will hold a snap presidential election on June 3 to elect a new leader after months of political turmoil that left a power vacuum as South Korea seeks to negotiate to remove US tariffs on its export-reliant economy.

Reuters