US EditionNuclear Subs and Bounded Autonomy: The Evolving Logic of the South-US Alliance
South Korea aims to expand naval reach with nuclear-powered submarines amid regional challenges, with development expected to take at least a decade, the ROK Navy said.
- On Tuesday, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the United States will fully support South Korea's nuclear submarine plan, reaffirming President Donald Trump's approval announced last week.
- Seoul seeks nuclear propulsion to expand naval reach across the Indo-Pacific near Taiwan and the Luzon Strait, tied to aims to retake OPCON after U.S. President Donald Trump's breakthrough visit.
- Legal barriers include the unchanged 123 Agreement, requiring congressional approval and interagency review; the ROK Navy estimates development will take at least a decade needing compact naval reactors, trained personnel, and funding.
- By linking security to commerce, Washington's approval was largely a political gesture, while for Seoul the plan offers opportunity but requires years of negotiation, investment, and governance.
- If precedents multiply, Beijing reminded Seoul to `fulfill its non-proliferation obligations` and observers warn normalization could prompt Japan, Canada, or Brazil to seek similar deals without an IAEA framework.
11 Articles
11 Articles
The US and South Korea discuss the future of their military alliance and OPCON. Key to the annual meeting of the two nations
연합뉴스-Yonhap News Agency
Naver(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Ho-jun and Kim Cheol-seon = U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced on the 4th that he would actively support South Korea's introduction of nuclear-powered submarines.
Defense chiefs of S. Korea, US set to discuss alliance issues in key security talks
The defense chiefs of South Korea and the United States were set to hold their annual security talks in Seoul on Tuesday to discuss a range of security issues, such as how to modernize the decadeslong alliance between the two nations. Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will hold the 57th Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) at the defense ministry in Seoul. It marks their first co-chairing of the event since the…
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