Ahn Cheol-soo: "NCG Should Be Upgraded to Ministerial Level and Acquire Nuclear Submarines"

People Power Party lawmaker Ahn Cheol-soo raised his voice, saying that the Nuclear Consultative Group (NCG) with the United States should be elevated to a ministerial level in the future and that South Korea should also secure nuclear submarines that can be operated like Australia.

On the 4th, Ahn said on KBS's "Choi Kyung-young's Strong Current Affairs," "The NCG is a starting point for cooperation at a level lower than NATO's NPG."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

He said, "The NCG is at the deputy minister level, but NATO has a similar body called the NPG (Nuclear Planning Group), which is at the ministerial level. Another difference is that in the NPG, strategic planning is discussed together with the United States from the outset. So, in that regard, some evaluations say we are better, but I do not think so."

Ahn said, "Since we created this important point (NCG) that did not exist before, our task is to elevate it to the ministerial level, at least to the level of NATO's NPG, and to raise it to the extent that we participate together from the strategic planning stage," adding, "There was no mention of nuclear reprocessing or nuclear-powered submarines, but I see these as tasks left for the future."

He emphasized that ultimately, South Korea should aim to secure nuclear reprocessing capabilities at the level of Japan and, like Australia, obtain nuclear-powered submarines from the United States. He said, "When the missile agreement was lifted before, we were able to launch missiles with solid fuel, and the weight restrictions were removed, leading to a remarkable advancement in missile technology in a short period," adding, "Similarly, through nuclear agreements and related accords, we must secure these possibilities."

Ahn also referred to the upcoming Korea-Japan summit with Prime Minister Kishida, who will visit South Korea this weekend, calling it "a process." He said, "Actually, we were the first to break the ice last time. At that time, Japan was just before an election, so there was no corresponding action from Japan.” He added, “This time, since they have already won the election and their approval rating has risen significantly, we expect at least a reaffirmation of the statements made during the Kim Dae-jung-Obuchi Korea-Japan Partnership Declaration regarding historical issues."

Ahn said, "The Kim Dae-jung-Obuchi Korea-Japan Partnership Declaration was the point when Korea-Japan relations were at their best in history," adding, "If we set that as the goal and reaffirm those statements, we will be able to correct various inappropriate remarks and related issues accordingly."

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