Seoul and Washington have yet to reach an agreement in negotiations on cost sharing regarding American troops stationed on the Korean Peninsula. 

The Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the eighth round of the Special Measures Agreement negotiations wrapped up without a deal in Seoul on Friday. 

The ministry said although the two sides are continuously trying to iron out their differences, including the amount of cost to be shared and how to split it, they were unable to produce an outcome this time. 

The ministry, however, said there was some “practical progress” on institutional and technical areas based on discussions so far. 

The two sides shared the perception that it is difficult to complete the domestic procedures necessary for the implementation of a new agreement, but agreed to continue work to produce a final draft of the agreement by next month to minimize the gap. 

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

Currently, South Korea pays about 960 billion won, or 856 million dollars, to support the 28-thousand-500 U.S. military personnel stationed on the peninsula. The current five-year contract will expire on December 31st.