US to discuss troop withdrawal from South Korea if North Korea demands

"That's part of the issues that we'll be discussing in our negotiations with our allies first and then of course North Korea," US Defense Secretary James Mattis said yesterday about the option of withdrawing troops from South Korea when North Korea requests it as a condition of a peace treaty, according toSputnik.

The above statement was made by Mr. Mattis in the context of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in yesterday issuing a joint statement after the summit, emphasizing that the two countries agreed to officially end the Korean War.

The 1950-1953 Korean War ended with an armistice signed by South Korea, North Korea, the United States and China, so the two Koreas are technically still at war. South Korea and North Korea will have to negotiate with the United States and China to turn this armistice into a permanent peace treaty.

If South Korea and North Korea sign a peace treaty, the US will likely no longer have a reason to maintain nearly 24,000 troops stationed in South Korea. US President Donald Trump threatened in March to withdraw troops from South Korea if a better trade deal with the country is not reached.

During yesterday's summit, the leaders of South Korea and North Korea also pledged to work towards the goal of complete denuclearization of the peninsula, which will also be the focus of discussion at the upcoming summit between Mr. Kim and Mr. Trump.