U.S. senator seeks to reassure South Korea on commitment to troop funding

South Korean (blue headbands) and U.S. Marines take positions as amphibious assault vehicles of the South Korean Marine Corps fire smoke bombs during a U.S.-South Korea joint landing operation drill in Pohang, South Korea, March 12, 2016. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji

SEOUL (Reuters) - A U.S. senator visiting South Korea has sought to reassure his hosts of the U.S. commitment to funding its military presence there, which President-elect Donald Trump had called into question during the U.S. presidential campaign.

South Korea is home to 28,500 U.S. troops, a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean war, and there has been concern in Seoul that a Trump administration will demand that Seoul sharply raise its share of the cost of maintaining their presence.