SEOUL: South Korea confirmed Tuesday that Seoul and Washington are discussing its involvement in US nuclear asset management in the face of North Korean nuclear threats after President Joe Biden denied that the allies were discussing joint nuclear exercises.
The distinction came after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un began the new year by vowing to mass-produce battlefield nuclear weapons aimed at South Korea and to introduce a more powerful intercontinental ballistic missile capable of striking the mainland United States. Some experts believe Kim will eventually try to use his expanded arsenal to gain outside concessions such as sanctions relief.
In a newspaper interview published Monday, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol stated that the two countries were pushing for joint planning and training involving US nuclear assets and that the US had responded positively to the idea.
When asked later at the White House if the two countries were talking about joint nuclear exercises, Biden said, "No."
Yoon's spokesperson, Kim Eun-hye, said Tuesday that Seoul and Washington are "discussing intel-sharing, joint planning, and subsequent joint action plans over the management of U.S. nuclear assets in response to North Korea's nuclear (threats)."
Kim stated Biden probably answered “no” due to the fact a reporter tersely requested him approximately a nuclear workout without imparting any heritage information.
In the Chosun Ilbo interview, Yoon stated that at the same time as the U.S. nuclear guns belong to the U.S., planning, intel-sharing and sports related to them have to be at the same time carried out with South Korea. He said he finds it difficult to assure his people of a security guarantee with the current levels of U.S. security commitment.
South Korea has no nuclear weapons and is protected by the United States "nuclear umbrella," which guarantees a devastating American response in the event of an attack on its ally. However, some experts question the effectiveness of this type of security commitment, claiming that the decision to use US nuclear weapons rests with the US president.
Yoon's office did not provide many details about his government's talks with the US. According to some observers, South Korea is attempting to gain a greater role in US decision-making regarding the deployment of its nuclear assets during times of tension with North Korea.
According to Kim Taewoo, a former head of Seoul's Korea Institute for National Unification, the reported South Korea-US discussion "benchmarked a NATO-style nuclear-sharing arrangement," which allows NATO member states' warplanes to carry US nuclear weapons. He believes the talks are still falling short of the NATO agreement because possible nuclear exercises between the two countries would most likely involve South Korean air force aircraft escorting US aircraft practising nuclear strikes during joint drills.
"North Korea would take this with caution. (South Korea and the United States) are discussing this in order to persuade North Korea to take this seriously... because it can be used as a deterrent against North Korea," Kim Taewoo explained.
He believes South Korea and the United States are likely discussing the issue through unofficial channels. This allows South Korea to claim it is discussing the issue with the US while also allowing Washington to deny it, he said.
North Korea conducted a record number of weapons tests last year, launching a variety of ballistic missiles capable of reaching the United States mainland as well as its allies South Korea and Japan. North Korea also passed a new law in September authorizing the use of its nuclear weapons in a variety of situations, including non-war scenarios.
Kim Jong Un ordered the "exponential" expansion of his country's nuclear arsenal and the mass production of tactical nuclear weapons tasked with attacking South Korea, as well as the development of a new ICBM tasked with having a "quick nuclear counterstrike" capability — a weapon he needs to strike the mainland, according to North Korea's state media on Sunday.