Stalled talks on South Korean nuclear-powered submarines to begin on the 1st; U.S. undersecretary to visit Seoul

During the June 3 nationwide local elections, follow-up "kickoff" talks between South Korea and the United States will begin on the introduction of South Korea's nuclear-powered submarine, one of the Lee Jae-myung administration's biggest security achievements. The meeting comes about two weeks after President Lee spoke by phone with President Donald Trump on the 17th. The two leaders reached an agreement on approval for a South Korean nuclear-powered submarine at last year's summit. Follow-up consultations have been under way since then, but they were delayed as the U.S. negotiating team was formed late amid the war in the Middle East and other developments.
According to diplomatic sources on the 31st, South Korea and the United States will hold a launch meeting in Seoul on the 2nd and 3rd to discuss follow-up security measures under the "Joint Fact Sheet from the Korea-U.S. Summit (JFS)." For the meeting, a cross-government U.S. delegation led by Allison Hooker, undersecretary of state, will visit Seoul. The delegation will also include officials from the White House National Security Council (NSC), the U.S. Department of State, the United States Department of Energy (DOE), and the United States Department of Defense (DoD).
The South Korean delegation will include Park Yoon-joo, first vice foreign minister, as well as officials from the presidential office's National Security Office, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Climate and Energy, the Ministry of Science and ICT, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission (NSSC).
The two sides are expected to work on final coordination over issues on which they have differed. In the case of building a South Korean nuclear-powered submarine, Seoul has said it would consult with Washington on the supply of low-enriched nuclear fuel, while building the hull and reactor in South Korea. The U.S. side, however, has said President Donald Trump wanted the submarine to be built at Philadelphia Shipyard.
The two countries must also revise their Nuclear Cooperation Agreement. As in Japan's case, an amendment is needed so that South Korea can independently exercise its rights to produce uranium enriched to less than 20 percent and to reprocess spent nuclear fuel.
Coordination among agencies within the Trump administration is also required. The U.S. Department of State, DOE, and DoD have held differing views on the principle of nuclear nonproliferation. Even if the Trump administration grants South Korea enrichment and reprocessing rights, it must directly prepare and submit to Congress a Nuclear Nonproliferation Assessment Report (NPAS) proving that there is no risk of nuclear weapons proliferation. It has been reported that there is considerable opposition in the current US Congress, especially among some Democratic Party lawmakers, who argue that allowing South Korea to enrich and reprocess uranium would be a dangerous move that reverses nonproliferation policy. South Korea must also transparently accept IAEA inspections and clearly persuade Washington that it has no intention of developing its own nuclear weapons.
In a recent report to the president, Ahn Gyu-back, South Korea's defense minister, said, "The South Korean nuclear-powered submarine under development has nothing to do with possessing or operating nuclear weapons." He added, "We will secure transparency and credibility while cooperating with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)."
rainman@fnnews.com Kim Kyung-soo Reporter