US, South Korea discuss cooperation on nuclear-powered submarines

ANKARA

South Korea’s push to acquire nuclear-powered submarines will contribute to the alliance with the US by boosting Seoul’s deterrence capabilities, Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said Monday.

Cho made the remarks during a breakfast meeting with the US Undersecretary of War for Policy, Elbridge Colby. Yonhap News Agency reported.

Colby is visiting Seoul this week following the Pentagon's release of a new National Defense Strategy, which includes its policy direction for the Korean Peninsula and other alliance issues.

"Minister Cho, in particular, recalled that nuclear-powered submarine cooperation will contribute to the alliance (with the US) by strengthening South Korea's deterrence capabilities, calling for the need for concrete implementation steps through working-level talks," the ministry said in a statement.

Colby appreciated South Korea’s commitment as a "model ally" to playing a leading role in the defense of the Korean Peninsula by strengthening its own defense capabilities.

The US Department of War will play an active role in ensuring that key agreements reached at the summit talks are swiftly implemented, he added.

In November last year, South Korea and the US signed a trade agreement that includes a $150 billion Korean investment in the US shipbuilding sector, and both countries agreed to “move forward” on building nuclear-powered submarines.

Under the agreement, South Korea will build nuclear-powered submarines as part of a new partnership with Washington in shipbuilding, artificial intelligence and the nuclear industry.

In a related development, South Korea’s Defense Ministry said the new US defense strategy placed an emphasis on Seoul's own capabilities to play a more "leading role" in the security of the Korean Peninsula.

The National Defense Strategy said South Korea is capable of taking "primary" responsibility to deter North Korea with "critical, but more limited" US support.