Foreign Ministry sets up nuclear-powered submarine team ahead of talks with U.S. in February–March

[Financial News] The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has created a dedicated unit to conduct additional negotiations with the United States on nuclear-powered submarines. The ministry formed this unit ahead of a visit to South Korea by the U.S. negotiating team, expected between late February and mid-March, to discuss the introduction of nuclear-powered submarines and revisions to the nuclear energy agreement.
On the 12th, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that it had recently set up a Nuclear-Powered Submarine Negotiation Team under its North American Affairs Bureau, which oversees overall South Korea–U.S. relations. The team consists of a director at the deputy director level and two additional staff members.
Until now, key policy decisions on nuclear-powered submarines have mainly been made by the National Security Office at the presidential office. In December last year, the Ministry of National Defense also launched an Interagency Task Force on Nuclear-Powered Submarines led by the ministry. Going forward, however, the role of conducting additional negotiations with the United States will effectively shift to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The newly established negotiation team will lead talks to implement the joint fact sheet, a joint explanatory document reflecting the agreement reached between the South Korean and U.S. presidents.
The Nuclear-Powered Submarine Negotiation Team is expected to serve as a key consultation channel with the United States, including through the task force’s activities, and to focus on practical preparations for a separate bilateral agreement needed to build nuclear-powered submarines. The team also plans to coordinate closely with the Nuclear-Powered Submarine Acquisition Promotion Team, which the Ministry of National Defense created last month under its Defense Policy Bureau.



rainman@fnnews.com Reporter Kim Kyung-soo Reporter