"Difficult to Deploy Nukes Like NATO... Formalizing 'Korean-Style Nuclear Sharing'"

Professor Min Jeong-hoon of the Korea National Diplomatic Academy CBS Radio Interview
"Creating a Permanent Nuclear Sharing Consultative Body Would Be a Major Advancement"

President Yoon Suk-yeol is on a 5-night, 7-day state visit to the United States, drawing attention to the key agenda items of the Korea-US summit. Professor Min Jeong-hoon of the Korea National Diplomatic Academy's Americas Research Department emphasized, "The most important agenda is how to secure our interests in the economic and security sectors."

Professor Min appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' on the 25th and said, "Marking the 70th anniversary of the Korea-US alliance, there will be in-depth discussions on what kind of global comprehensive strategic alliance the Korea-US alliance will show going forward."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Regarding measures to strengthen extended deterrence in response to North Korea's nuclear threat, Professor Min said, "If we actively participate and our voices are more reflected, we might be able to shake off much of our security anxieties," adding, "In that regard, let's institutionalize and codify it. I expect that we will bring back achievements in this area this time."

On the so-called formalization of 'Korean-style nuclear sharing,' which is reportedly under discussion, he explained, "It involves codifying that if South Korea is attacked with nuclear weapons by North Korea, 'the United States will retaliate with nuclear weapons,' and then if South Korea requests, 'strategic assets will be deployed.' If they agree to institutionalize these discussions regularly and establish a permanent ministerial-level consultative body, it would be a significant advancement."

However, he predicted that deploying US nuclear weapons in Korea, similar to NATO's deployment in Europe, would not be easy. Professor Min said, "From a military perspective, there is much debate about whether placing nuclear weapons on the Korean Peninsula would be strategically and militarily beneficial."

Regarding economic issues such as the US Semiconductor Support Act and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), he noted, "What needs attention is that these are connected to US domestic politics and are legislative matters," diagnosing that the most realistic approach is to minimize damage to our companies through adjustments in the enforcement ordinances of related laws.

Professor Min said, "The interests of the US Democratic Party, Republican Party, and voters are intertwined. Therefore, it will be difficult to change the overall direction of providing benefits to products manufactured in the US through enforcement ordinances."

He explained, "So, under our country's laws, such as presidential enforcement ordinances or when ministries act, since our companies have their positions, it is possible through enforcement ordinances to grant some grace periods until factories are fully built."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.