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| President Yoon Suk Yeol and U.S. President Joe Biden toast during a state dinner held at the White House in Washington, D.C. Wednesday (local time). Yonhap |
Public calls for Seoul to go nuclear expected to continue despite enhanced security pledge from US: experts
By Lee Hyo-jin
The United States' pledge on strengthened extended deterrence seems insufficient to quell growing skepticism among South Koreans about the U.S. nuclear umbrella, according to local analysts, who expect to see continued public calls for Seoul to acquire its own nuclear arsenal.
After a summit held at the White House on Wednesday (local time), President Yoon Suk Yeol and U.S. President Joe Biden released the Washington Declaration, which highlights Washington's enhanced commitment on its extended deterrence offered to South Korea against North Korea's evolving nuclear threats.
Under the agreement, Biden promised an array of security measures including regular deployment of nuclear submarines to South Korea ― for the first time in more than 40 years. The two nations will also enhance information-sharing of U.S. nuclear assets and combined military exercises.
In addition, a new Nuclear Consultative Group (NCG) will be launched between Seoul and Washington, through which the two sides will discuss nuclear and strategic planning in response to the North's possible attack. But the operational control of nuclear weapons will still remain in U.S. hands.
In return for Washington's pledge for enhanced security efforts, the South Korean government reaffirmed its compliance to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), with the U.S. underscoring that it will not be stationing any nuclear weapons on the Korean Peninsula.
The declaration came amid growing calls among South Koreans that the nation needs to develop its own nuclear weapons or that U.S. tactical nuclear weapons should be redeployed here, to respond more effectively to Pyongyang's evolving nuclear threats.
However, the U.S. has made it clear through the declaration that it has no intention of returning its tactical or any other kind of nuclear weapons to the Korean Peninsula.
Yang Uk, a research fellow at the center for foreign policy and national security of Asan Institute for Policy Studies, commented that the joint statement falls short of public expectations from South Korea's perspective.
"The agreement itself is meaningful in that South Korea has succeeded in gaining further nuclear assurances from the U.S., but it won't be able to relieve public concerns about the advancement of North Korea's nuclear and missile prowess," Yang told The Korea Times.
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| President Yoon Suk Yeol attends a joint press conference with U.S. President Joe Biden (not seen) after a summit held at the White House in Washington, D.C., Wednesday (local time). Joint Press Corps |
"The two nations should have at least agreed on joint planning and use of U.S. nuclear weapons," he said. "I don't think the declaration will be able to ease concerns among many South Koreans who have been voicing need for the nation to build its own nuclear weapons."
According to a recent survey conducted among 1,000 adults by the Asan Institute, released earlier this month, 64 percent of respondents viewed that South Korea should acquire its own nuclear weapons.
Yang went on to say that despite the planned launch of the NCG, it remains uncertain how much influence the South Korean military will have in decisions on U.S.-owned nuclear weapons.
"The decision for nuclear use is the sole authority of the U.S. president. So what matters here is how much the NCG will be involved in the decision-making process. Whether the discussions made in the consultative group will be delivered directly to the U.S. leader is something we should be looking closely at," he said.
But at the same time, Yang said, "But it's quite comprehensible why the U.S. drew a firm line on South Korea's independent nuclear deterrence. A nuclear-armed South Korea is absolutely not what Washington wants, and the Biden administration strongly opposes the spread of nuclear arsenals to any nations."
Cheong Seong-chang, a senior analyst at the Sejong Institute think tank, viewed that South Korea gave up on its nuclear ambition too easily, thereby throwing away a powerful card it could have played against Pyongyang.
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