South Korea and the United States have wrapped up the first round of negotiations to renew their defense cost-sharing agreement.

Led by top negotiators Chang Won-sam from South Korea’s Foreign Ministry and James DeHart from the U.S. State Department, delegates from both sides met in Seoul for two days of sessions that ran through Wednesday to churn out a new Special Measures Agreement(SMA). 

They agreed in principle that Seoul's share of the cost for the upkeep of  U.S. Forces Korea should be reasonable and fair, but were far apart on how much more Seoul should pay.

The second round of negotiations will be held in the U.S. next month. 

Under the current one-year SMA, set to expire on December 31, Seoul agreed to pay one-point-04 trillion won this year, an increase of eight-point-two percent from the previous year.