South Korea says US troops won’t be reduced even if Trump wins presidency

But December’s National Defence Authorisation Act says the US administration requires congressional approval to scale back the 28,500 troops in South Korea, Kim said.

Strengthening ties between the United States, South Korea and Japan would help overcome any political changes in the US, he added.

South Korea on alert for clashes, nuclear test as Kim threatens ‘major ripple’

At Camp David last August, US President Joe Biden and the leaders of South Korea and Japan agreed to strengthen military and economic cooperation.

The comments came in Kim’s reply to a question on a Politico report that Trump was considering letting North Korea keep its nuclear weapons, and offering financial incentives to stop making new bombs – which Trump has denied as “fake news”.

“Recognising North Korea as a nuclear power means that South Korea will have no choice but to develop nuclear weapons, and Japan [also],” Kim said, when asked about the views of some US experts.

These analysts argue that North Korea should be recognised as a nuclear state and call for disarmament talks.

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North Korea to keep ‘raising the stakes’ with more ICBM tests expected

North Korea to keep ‘raising the stakes’ with more ICBM tests expected

Neither the US or South Korea can accept the prospect of recognising North Korea as a nuclear state, since that would trigger a domino effect leading to the collapse of the Non-Proliferation Treaty framework, Kim said.

The neighbours remain technically in a state of war since the Korean war from 1950 to 1953 ended in an armistice rather than a peace treaty.