South Korea Looks at Getting Its Own Nukes

By JASON SIBERT

In a move that drew attention from capitols around the world, South Korea President Yoon Suk-yeol publicly suggested the possibility of Seoul developing its own nuclear weapons in the face of growing nuclear threats from North Korea.

He made the comment at an official policy briefing by South Korea’s foreign and defense ministries on Jan. 11. According to reports, he suggested his country should develop nuclear weapons if the United States fails to deploy nuclear in the region due to the threat of North Korea’s arsenal. Suk-yeol said the job wouldn’t be hard considering South Korea’s technological prowess. Yoon stated: “it’s possible that the problem gets worse, and our country will introduce tactical nuclear weapons or build them on our own. If that’s the case, we can have our own nuclear weapons pretty quickly, given our scientific and technological capabilities.”

However, he also said the country has no current plans to develop nuclear weapons.

It is possible that Yoon’s statement was intended to get a fresh guarantee from the United States on its commitment to augment its efforts in beefing up the extended deterrence capabilities. However, the talk he engaged in means that the country is starting to question the US’ security guarantees. Japan’s leaders have echoed a similar sentiment, as stated by writer Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan in his story, “Is South Korea Considering Nuclear Weapons,” at TheDiplomat.com. The foreign policies of the two countries highlight the failure of the international community’s nuclear non-proliferation architecture in curbing North Korea’s nuclear ambitions. Rajagopalan said: “for all practical purposes, North Korea is a nuclear weapons state, strengthening its capabilities in terms of the size of the arsenal and delivery systems. North Korea has already conducted six nuclear tests, and there has been fear of a looming seventh nuclear test to potentially try out miniaturized versions of nuclear warheads that can fit on cruise missiles.”

North Korea is also developing a number of new nuclear missiles, including missiles with potentially intercontinental ranges, such as the Hwasong-14 and Hwasong-17. Some US officials have suggested arms control with the rogue Asian state, which implies our country recognizing its arsenal. However, these comments are walked back by the State Department, as stated by Yoon.

The central issue is China’s expansionist foreign policy and its nuclear arsenal, as North Korea is in China’s political orbit. Japan is also afraid of the growing arsenals of North Korea and China. Taming China just might tame North Korea. It certainly isn’t in the security interest of the US to have more countries in the world with nuclear weapons. Intentional nuclear war is a threat but accidents involving nuclear weapons could also kick off a nuclear confrontation. This almost happened in the first Cold War. Writer Thomas Grant makes a case for the validity of nuclear non-proliferation agreements in his story in The Hill, “Make Nuclear Non-Proliferation Great Again.” The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, a 1968 treaty that requires all signees work to reduce the number of nuclear weapons in the world, has played a role in our foreign policy for years.

Our diplomats have recently tried to bring China to the table on nuclear arms control, said Grant. It the NPT’s influence grows, we could hold China, a member of the treaty, to some standards on nuclear weapons. The diplomatic wing of our government should challenge China to be transparent on its nuclear activities. This would be a start, but only a start to a peaceful and lawful world. By their unacceptable activities, China and Russia, a country in China’s orbit, have proven that they have no interest in the concept of international law. However, a dialog on nuclear weapons might push them in the right direction.

In time, perhaps due to the failure of their expansive tendencies, China and Russia might learn to accept a few lawful principals in their foreign policy. Next, the world’s main geopolitical powers might learn to police the world in a great power concert. Franklin Roosevelt’s vision of a system of world policemen might finally be a reality!

Jason Sibert of St. Louis, Mo., is the Lead Writer for the Peace Economy. St. Louis, Mo. Email jasonsibert@hotmail.com.

From The Progressive Populist, March 1, 2023

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