US officially approves South Korea's nuclear sub drive, backs its push for uranium enrichment

Washington, Nov 14 The United States has officially approved South Korea's push to build nuclear-powered submarines and voiced its support for the ally's drive to secure uranium enrichment and spent nuclear fuel reprocessing capabilities, according to a released joint fact sheet.

The White House released the document outlining the results of the two summits that President Lee Jae Myung and US President Donald Trump held at the White House in Washington in August and in Korea's southeastern city of Gyeongju last month ahead of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.

The fact sheet, the first high-level bilateral official document since the launch of the Lee administration in June, encompassed a series of agreements on trade and security, including Seoul's pledge to invest US$350 billion in the US in return for Washington's lowering of "reciprocal" tariffs on Korean goods to 15 per cent from 25 per cent, Yonhap news agency reported.

"Consistent with the bilateral 123 agreement and subject to US legal requirements, the United States supports the process that will lead to the ROK's civil uranium enrichment and spent fuel reprocessing for peaceful uses," the document reads. ROK is short for South Korea's official name, the Republic of Korea.

"The United States has given approval for the ROK to build nuclear-powered attack submarines."

The 123 agreement refers to a bilateral civil nuclear energy cooperation pact that bans South Korea's uranium enrichment and reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel as it allows only for the "peaceful" use of nuclear energy.

Seoul has sought a revision to the pact to secure enrichment and recycling rights as part of efforts to address concerns about energy security and growing stockpiles of nuclear waste. To acquire and run nuclear-powered submarines, Seoul and Washington may also need to revise the pact or set up a separate arrangement, observers said.

The Asian country is said to pursue the acquisition of four or more 5,000-tonne conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarines by the mid-2030s.

The US' formal backing for Seoul's drive to build the vessels marked a culmination of the Asian country's decades-old push to secure the strategic assets to counter North Korea's advancing military threats.

It came as the Trump administration stresses the need for allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific to become stronger at a time when it strives to counter the "pacing threat" from an increasingly assertive China.

On trade, the fact sheet said that the US will reduce sectoral tariffs on automobiles, auto parts, timber, lumber and wood derivatives to 15 per cent. It did not specify from when the reduced auto tariffs are to be applied.

On anticipated tariffs on pharmaceuticals, the US intends to apply a rate of no greater than 15 per cent to Korean products, while it will offer semiconductor tariff rates for Korea that are "no less favourable" than terms that may be offered in a future deal covering a volume of chip trade at least as large as Korea's.

The document clarified Seoul's commitment to investing $150 billion in the US shipbuilding sector and additionally $200 billion, which is pursuant to the "Memorandum of Understanding with respect to Strategic Investments," expected to be signed by representatives of the two countries.

Reflecting Seoul's concerns about the impact of its pledged investment on the foreign exchange market, the two sides agreed that South Korea will not be required to fund an aggregate amount of US dollars greater than $20 billion in any calendar year, the document underlined.

On defence, it pointed out that the US underscored its commitment to the defence of the ally through the "enduring" presence of the US Forces Korea (USFK).

But it stopped short of committing the US to retaining the current level of USFK service members that stands at around 28,500, despite lingering speculation that Washington could seek a troop drawdown as part of its regional force posture adjustment to focus more on addressing Chinese threats.

The US also reaffirmed its pledge to provide "extended deterrence," leveraging the full range of its capabilities, including nuclear arms, while Lee and Trump committed to strengthening cooperation through consultation mechanisms, including the Nuclear Consultative Group (NCG).

Launched in 2023, the NCG is the allies' key nuclear deterrence platform. It has not convened since the Trump administration took office in January, raising a flurry of questions over when it will resume and whether it will undergo any changes in its operational principles and concept.

As previously announced, it codified Seoul's plan to increase its defense spending to 3.5 percent of its gross domestic product "as soon as possible" in accordance with Korea's legal requirements.

Seoul committed to spending $25 billion on US military equipment purchases by 2030 and shared its plan to provide comprehensive support for the USFK amounting to $33 billion, according to the fact sheet.

In addition, the document included the leaders' commitment to continue cooperation toward the transition of wartime operational control (OPCON), which the Lee administration seeks to achieve before the end of its five-year term in 2030.

"With the support of the United States, the ROK pledged to accelerate efforts to strengthen its military capabilities necessary to lead the combined conventional defense against the Democratic People's Republic of Korea," it said, referring to the North by its official name.

"These include the acquisition of advanced US weapons systems and expansion of bilateral defense industrial cooperation, including in high-tech weapons systems."

South Korea handed over operational control of its troops to the US-led UN Command during the 1950-53 Korean War. Control was then transferred to the allies' Combined Forces Command in 1978. Wartime operational control still remains in US hands, while South Korea retook peacetime OPCON in 1994.

The leaders also agreed to enhance the US conventional deterrence posture against "all regional threats" to the alliance, including North Korea, the fact sheet said -- language that underscores Washington's call for Seoul to contribute to deterring Chinese threats.

"The two sides affirm relevant understandings since 2006," it said.

It was apparently referring to a 2006 joint statement on "strategic flexibility" -- a US effort to expand the operational scope of the currently 28,500-strong USFK beyond the Korean Peninsula to cover China-related contingencies, including a Taiwan conflict.

The 2006 document stated that South Korea respects the "necessity" for strategic flexibility, while the US respects Seoul's position that it will not be involved in a regional conflict against the will of the Korean people.

In pursuit of "reciprocal" trade, the document underlined a bilateral agreement to address Korea's non-tariff barriers.

"The ROK will work together with the United States to address non-tariff barriers affecting trade in food and agricultural products," it said.

The efforts include establishing a "US Desk" dedicated to requests for US horticultural products and preserving market access for US meats and cheeses that use certain terms, as well as streamlining the regulatory approval process for agricultural biotechnology products and resolving the backlog of US applications.

On top of them, the two sides committed to ensuring US companies are not discriminated against and do not face unnecessary barriers in terms of laws and policies concerning digital services, including network usage fees and online platform regulations, according to the document.

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