US, South Korea begin talks on nuclear cooperation and submarine plan

SEOUL: South Korea and the United States held their first round of talks this week on nuclear cooperation under a joint security fact sheet agreed last year by US President Donald Trump and South Korean leader Lee Jae Myung, Seoul said on Wednesday.

The discussions took place on Tuesday and Wednesday. South Korea’s Foreign Ministry had said earlier that the agenda would include Seoul’s push to widen its rights for uranium enrichment and spent-fuel reprocessing, which it says are needed to support a plan to build nuclear-powered submarines.

According to the ministry, South Korea’s delegation was headed by First Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo, while the US side was led by Allison Hooker, the State Department’s under secretary for political affairs.

Agenda covers fuel cycle rights and submarines

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Park Il told a briefing on Tuesday that the meeting agenda included both the issue of expanding enrichment and reprocessing rights and the issue of nuclear-powered submarines. He said the discussions on enrichment and reprocessing were linked to revising the current nuclear agreement and were intended solely for civilian and commercial use.

Park said the submarine issue would need to be handled separately because it involves military use of nuclear material.

"Because nuclear-powered submarines are related to the military use of nuclear energy, a separate agreement will be needed under US energy law," he said.

The ministry said on Wednesday that both sides agreed to work toward substantive outcomes as quickly as possible, create a framework to review progress during the year, and speed up future consultations.

Existing limits and long-term submarine goal

The US-South Korea joint fact sheet issued in November said Washington backed a process that could allow South Korea to pursue civilian uranium enrichment and spent-fuel reprocessing for peaceful purposes. It also said the United States had approved South Korea’s construction of nuclear-powered attack submarines and would work with Seoul on related requirements, including fuel sourcing.

South Korea wants to launch its first nuclear-powered submarine by the mid-2030s, using low-enriched uranium fuel and building the vessel at home, Defence Minister Ahn Gyu-back said last month.

Under the current nuclear agreement between the two countries, South Korea cannot reprocess spent nuclear fuel or enrich uranium for military use, although it operates nuclear reactors for electricity generation.