South Korean official says U.S. troops likely to stay even if Trump is re-elected

The United States is unlikely to cut back its forces in South Korea even if former U.S. President Donald Trump wins re-election, the South’s minister tasked with matters related to neighboring North Korea said in a television interview.

In the interview transmitted on Saturday, Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho told broadcaster KBS this was because the U.S. Congress had already decided the matter in a defense bill it recently passed.

“One of the concerns many people have is … the issue of any withdrawal of U.S. troops from Korea” if Trump is re-elected, Kim said.