Senate Committee Backs S. Korea-U.S. Submarine Cooperation, Seeks Assessments

By Song Sang-ho and Cho Joon-hyung

WASHINGTON, June 18 (Yonhap) -- A Senate committee has expressed support for South Korea-U.S. cooperation on submarine manufacturing and directed the Pentagon to provide security and other assessments of Seoul's efforts to secure nuclear-powered submarines, a congressional report showed Thursday.

In a report on the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027, the Senate Armed Services Committee mentioned the two countries' cooperation over Seoul's push to secure conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarines, pointing to its potentially "positive" security implications.

The allies have been cooperating on Seoul's submarine project, as Washington expressed support for it in a joint fact sheet released in November following a summit between South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and U.S. President Donald Trump the previous month.

"The committee supports bilateral cooperation on submarine manufacturing with South Korea and acknowledges the potential positive implications for stability and security in the Indo-Pacific region," the committee said in the report.

The committee directed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, in coordination with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, to provide it and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee with a report on the submarine project no later than Feb. 1 next year.

It said the report should define the scope of bilateral cooperation in developing a nuclear-powered submarine for South Korea, assess the impact on regional security of South Korea's acquisition of the submarines and evaluate proliferation risks associated with the nuclear project.

The report apparently reflects Congress' interest in the two countries' ongoing cooperation on South Korea's push to secure strategic submarines that Seoul believes would help better deter advancing North Korean military threats.