Senate OKs Defense Bill with Funds for Cooperation with Japan, S. Korea

August 2, 2018

Washington- The U.S. Senate approved Wednesday a 717-billion-dollar defense authorization bill for fiscal 2019, including funds for cooperation with Japan and South Korea in responding to the threat of North Korean ballistic missiles.

The bill, sent to President Donald Trump, calls on the Missile Defense Agency to collaborate with the two Asian allies from fiscal 2019 in the development of the ability to intercept ballistic missiles soon after their launches.

Meanwhile, the bill demands that at least 22,000 U.S. soldiers be stationed in South Korea, compared with the current level of some 28,000 troops.

There has been speculation that the United States may scale back its military presence in South Korea after Trump suggested such a move.

The bill also prohibits all government agencies and companies doing business with the government from using the products of Chinese government-linked companies, including telecommunications equipment makers ZTE Corp. and Huawei Technologies Co.

Furthermore, the government is urged not to allow China to participate in the U.S.-led Rim of the Pacific, or RIMPAC, multinational naval exercises. This year, Washington retracted the RIMPAC invitation for China to express its protest against the country's military base development in the South China Sea. Jiji Press