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| B-1B bomber |
The combined cost for the three bombers ― B-1B, B-2A and B-52H bombers ― to complete their 13-hour mission exceeds 3.87 billion won ($3.5 million), CBS reported, citing data from the U.S. Air Force.
The U.S. has for years deployed such aircraft to South Korea when conducting military exercises aimed at enhancing defense readiness against potential threats from North Korea.
The report came a day after the landmark June 12 summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Singapore.
After holding denuclearization talks with Kim, Trump expressed his willingness to suspend joint military exercises with South Korea, as he claimed the latter does not pay enough for their regular combined drills.
"The war games are very expensive and we (the U.S.) pay for a big majority of them," Trump said in a press conference after the summit last week. "It is a long time for these big massive planes to be flying to South Korea to practice and then drop bombs and then go back to Guam. It is very expensive and I did not like it."
His outward discontent comes while Seoul and Washington are negotiating to renew their five-year defense cost-sharing deal, which expires at the end of this year.
Both sides have yet to narrow their differences over renewing the deal, but the U.S. is expected to play the joint drills card as a bargaining chip to urge South Korea to pay more for the cost-sharing.
The Trump administration will also likely press South Korea to shoulder more of the costs to maintain U.S. troops here. This is because the U.S. leader, since taking office last year, has hinted at his plans to downsize the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK), claiming South Korea does not compensate the U.S. adequately for USFK maintenance costs.
