South Korea and the United States will kick off negotiations in Washington Monday on the sharing of costs related to Korea's combined defense next year.

Seoul officials said they hoped to complete the negotiations by the end of the year. But experts point out due to ongoing differences over costs for upgrading a tactical command center in the country, the talks would probably take longer.

South Korea's delegation will be led by Kim Sook, who heads the foreign ministry's North American division. The delegation will also include other officials from the defense ministry and the National Security Council.

South Korea earmarked 623 million dollars this year for its share of the combined defense. Officials say the U.S. is likely to demand an increase of 77 million dollars in order to reflect cost hikes from inflation.