President Lee Jae Myung shakes fingers with U.S. President Donald Trump throughout a dinner on the Asia-Pacific Financial Cooperation summit in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, Oct. 29. Yonhap
South Korea will pursue multifront discussions subsequent 12 months with the US on constructing its first nuclear-powered submarine, together with talks on uranium enrichment and the reprocessing of spent nuclear gas, in line with safety officers Sunday.
Throughout Nationwide Safety Adviser Wi Sung-lac’s newest go to to Washington, the 2 sides agreed to forge a separate bilateral settlement underneath Part 91 of the U.S. Atomic Power Act, which authorizes the U.S. president to approve the switch of nuclear supplies for navy use.
“Slightly than setting priorities, we are going to launch all of them without delay,” Wi was quoted as saying by Yonhap Information Company. “Talks on uranium enrichment, spent nuclear gas reprocessing and nuclear-powered submarines will all be pursued concurrently between South Korea and the US beginning early subsequent 12 months.”
The 2 nations have reached a shared understanding on the necessity for follow-up consultations to implement agreements reached on the summit degree, he stated, including that substantive, sector-specific talks will start in earnest subsequent 12 months.
Throughout his two-day journey, the highest safety official held a sequence of conferences with senior U.S. officers, together with Secretary of State and Nationwide Safety Adviser Marco Rubio and Power Secretary Chris Wright.
Wi stated the discussions have been easy, including that U.S. officers described the bilateral relationship as a “mannequin alliance.”
“Constructing on that ambiance, we wish to step up efforts on follow-up measures,” Wi stated, including that separate job forces on nuclear submarines and uranium enrichment are being arrange inside the presidential workplace to organize for the upcoming talks.
Nationwide Safety Adviser Wi Sung-lac speaks to reporters upon his arrival in Washington, Tuesday (native time). Yonhap
Wi’s go to adopted a summit in late October between President Lee Jae Myung and U.S. President Donald Trump, throughout which Trump accepted Seoul’s long-standing bid to construct a nuclear submarine to higher reply to North Korea’s advancing nuclear threats.
The agreements had been detailed in a joint reality sheet launched the next month. The doc stated Washington would assist Seoul in pursuing the processes wanted for civil uranium enrichment and spent nuclear gas reprocessing for peaceable makes use of.
Below the prevailing bilateral nuclear vitality settlement, South Korea could enrich uranium as much as 20 p.c and reprocess spent nuclear gas for civilian functions solely with U.S. consent — restrictions which have successfully barred Seoul from creating the capabilities wanted for nuclear submarines.
As the actual fact sheet didn’t spell out particulars, hypothesis had grown over how the undertaking would proceed, with some observers suggesting the bilateral nuclear pact itself would should be revised.
Wi’s newest remarks, nevertheless, counsel that Seoul and Washington are as a substitute pursuing an exemption underneath Part 91 of the U.S. Atomic Power Act with out revising the prevailing settlement.
The strategy mirrors the framework utilized to Australia, which was allowed to obtain nuclear submarines after becoming a member of the AUKUS safety partnership with the US and Britain in 2021.
“Some have argued that the bilateral nuclear cooperation settlement with the U.S. needs to be swiftly revised to grant Seoul autonomy over uranium enrichment and allow the home manufacturing of gas wanted for nuclear-powered submarines,” stated Jun Bong-geun, a nuclear knowledgeable and head of the Korea Nuclear Coverage Society. “Nonetheless, South Korea doesn’t have its personal enrichment amenities, making such proposals unrealistic.”
He added, “The one reasonable possibility is for South Korea to depend on gas equipped by the U.S. underneath a separate bilateral navy association that’s distinct from the prevailing civilian nuclear cooperation settlement.”
At a coverage briefing held Thursday, the Ministry of Nationwide Protection unveiled plans to conclude negotiations with Washington on nuclear gas for nuclear submarines inside two years.
On the identical day, Seoul convened a cross-agency job power — a coalition spanning the protection and overseas ministries, the navy and the Protection Acquisition Program Administration — to synchronize the intricate shifting components of the undertaking.
