A group of more than 50 members of the U.S. Congress is calling for a cut in the defense budget as a way to reduce the nation’s deficit.

The 57 Congress members, including the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, Barney Frank, made the demand in a letter they recently sent to the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform (NCFRR).

The Congress members said that the commission should look closely at excessive defense spending in an effort to reduce the budget deficit and national debt.

They noted that the U.S. has provided military protection to Europe and Asia through a nuclear umbrella and U.S. forces stationed there since the threat of the Soviet Union disappeared.

They claimed that the most realistic way to reduce the budget deficit is to make significant cuts to the defense budget, which now amounts to 710 billion U.S. dollars.

Any call for cuts to spending for keeping U.S. forces stationed overseas in the U.S. Congress could affect the relocation of U.S. bases in South Korea.

As a way to reduce the U.S. national deficit, Rep. Frank proposed in July that U.S. forces be withdrawn from foreign countries including South Korea.