U.S. South Korea Agree to Pause Drawdown

The United States will pause the drawdown of its troops in South Korea, military officials from both countries said Monday.

“We reached an agreement to maintain the current U.S. troop level on the Korean peninsula. This is a mutual agreement that benefits both our nations and will strengthen our alliance.” -President George W. Bush

The U.S. and South Korea agreed to the drawdown in 2004 when the U.S. had 38,500 troops stationed in South Korea. The number of troops were to be reduced to 25,000 by the end of 2008. Current level of 28,000 to be maintained.