U.S. President Donald Trump claimed on Wednesday that the United States spends a lot of money to help South Korea and other allies without getting much in return.

Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump was asked about tensions between the U.S. and China in the South China Sea. 

Trump remarked that the U.S. has a lot of very strong allies and that it is doing them a very big favor by having a presence in Asia.

He added that his country is spending a lot of money to help Japan, South Korea and the Philippines, and that in many cases, these people "don't do so much" for the U.S.

Trump went on to say that the U.S. is helping a lot of people throughout the world that have "never appreciated it" and that the U.S. has never had a leader that demanded they do so.

Trump's remarks come as Seoul and Washington are soon set to begin negotiations on a new defense-cost sharing deal for the upkeep of American troops stationed in South Korea.