Visiting Seoul on Friday, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper rightly observed that South Korea “is a wealthy country and could and should pay more” towards the cost of U.S. military forces defending that nation.
It’s really a no-brainer.
South Korea currently appropriates just over $900 million to the U.S. military’s South Korea account. The total cost of the U.S. military’s presence is approximately $4-5 billion. Considering that the U.S. military presence in South Korea is wholly intended for the defense of that nation, not our own, it should be obvious that South Korea ought to pay a more for its own defense.
Don’t misunderstand me. The defense of American allies should not be viewed primarily or even secondarily as a transactional issue. But alliances require burden-sharing fairness. South Korea’s 2018 GDP was over $1.6 trillion, and its growth rate is stable, yet South Korea continues to under-fund its defense budget. Where the United States currently spends around 3.1% of GDP on defense, South Korea spends only around 2.6% of GDP.
Yes, Seoul is putting more funds into strike-capability enhancement. Yes, it is showing a little more resolve in the face of foreign threats. But South Korea should be spending at least $5 billion more a year on its military. Remember, this is a nation that faces a constant existential threat of a North Korean invasion. Absent the U.S. military tools now defending South Korea — especially in terms of unique U.S. cyber, intelligence, and deep-strike capabilities — Seoul would have to spend billions more on defense.
This takes us back to the need for fairer South Korea burden-sharing. As with Europe’s contribution to NATO, it is crucial that allies adequately resource capabilities from which they benefit.
Seoul deserves America’s continuing friendship and support. But America deserves a fairer South Korean appraisal of the value of that support. Seoul should move toward covering at least half of U.S. military costs in South Korea.
