South Korea Expects Security Consultations With U.S. to Accelerate

By Oh Seok-min

SEOUL, Oct. 1 (Yonhap) -- South Korea expects progress in its security consultations with the United States to accelerate following the announcement of major Korean investment projects in the U.S., Seoul's foreign ministry said Thursday.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday (U.S. time) announced details of South Korea's planned US$200 billion investment in the U.S., part of a broader $350 billion commitment agreed by the two sides last year in exchange for lower U.S. tariffs on Korean goods.

The framework was outlined in a joint fact sheet issued in November following an October summit between President Lee Jae Myung and Trump, which also addressed security-related issues, including South Korea's pursuit of nuclear-powered submarines and its push to secure rights for uranium enrichment and spent nuclear fuel reprocessing.

"During the latest summit in New York, the leaders agreed that the two nations should move more quickly in discussing all pending issues covered in the joint fact sheet, including security matters," ministry spokesperson Park Doo-soon told a press briefing.

"Against the backdrop of this shared understanding, we hope that security consultations and other pending issues will continue to make progress through close communication between the two nations," he added.

The summit, held on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, took place last week before the investment package was formally announced. Lee and Trump welcomed the progress made in the investment negotiations and agreed to expedite discussions on other pending issues, including security matters, in tandem with the investment talks, the spokesperson said.

A second round of security consultations on revisions to their civil nuclear cooperation agreement, known as the 123 Agreement, was initially scheduled for July following the inaugural meeting in June, but a date has yet to be set.

Under the current pact, South Korea cannot enrich uranium or reprocess spent nuclear fuel without U.S. consent.

South Korea is also seeking to accelerate the development of nuclear-powered submarines. The government has set a goal of launching its first nuclear-powered submarine in the mid-2030s and deploying it with the Navy in the late 2030s.

First Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo told lawmakers last month that investment issues are "closely linked to security matters" and that Seoul is "making necessary requests to the U.S. side," while taking a comprehensive approach to negotiations on commercial cooperation.

Asked whether the differences between the two countries' announcements could affect security discussions, officials said the two sides would continue close communication.

Trump specified a gas-fired power plant in Texas, eight large-scale nuclear reactors and an Alaska liquefied natural gas (LNG) project as major investment destinations.

South Korea's industry ministry, however, said the Alaska LNG project had not yet been finalized, stressing that its commercial viability and other factors would need to be reviewed before any investment decision is made.

"Regarding the Alaska project, we understand that Trump has taken an interest in the project and emphasized the U.S. position. Follow-up consultations are expected to take place," a foreign ministry official said.

"In line with the understanding reached by the two leaders, we expect close discussions to continue so that the investment projects can move forward and progress can be made on security consultations," he added.