President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a joint policy briefing with the foreign, unification, defense and veterans ministries at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap
President Lee Jae Myung criticized the prolonged delay in the return of lands formerly used by U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) to the Korean side, Wednesday, saying it "defies common sense" and urging officials to speed up negotiations with Washington.
Lee argued that Korea has already fulfilled its obligations under the bilateral agreement for the relocation of USFK headquarters out of U.S. Army Garrison (USAG) Yongsan in central Seoul, but many of the former military sites that were supposed to be returned remain unavailable for public use.
In support of his claim, Lee noted that Korea spent more than 10 trillion won ($7.02 billion) to expand USAG Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, which became the main hub for American troops on the Korean Peninsula after the relocation was largely completed in 2018.
"Negotiations over the return of former U.S. military sites are taking far too long. It simply defies common sense,” the president said during a joint policy briefing from the foreign, unification, defense and veterans ministries at Cheong Wa Dae.
