(SEOUL) — South Korean President Lee Jae Myung sought to ease international concerns over the country’s nuclear ambitions on Monday, drawing a clear line between pursuing nuclear-powered submarines and any intent to develop nuclear weapons during a foreign press briefing at the presidential office in Seoul.
The briefing marked the one-year anniversary of South Korea’s return to democratic rule after former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s short-lived martial law attempt last year.
Lee and U.S. President Donald Trump reached a $350 billion investment and security agreement last month that included U.S. approval for South Korea to build nuclear-powered submarines.
Reflecting on the negotiations, Lee described Trump as “interesting and entertaining” and called the deal a “remarkable outcome” that provides South Korea with greater strategic flexibility.
Asked by ABC News whether he is aware of nuclear proliferation concerns in Washington, Lee said “nuclear nonproliferation is an international principle we must respect,” stressing that the treaty restricts the spread of nuclear weapons but not all nuclear technologies.
Any move toward nuclear armament would be “unrealistic and unwise,” Lee continued, adding that uranium enrichment for power generation and spent fuel reprocessing are “not directly related to nonproliferation.”
Meanwhile, Trump has praised the agreement as a boost for American shipbuilding, saying it would create jobs in the United States. “South Korea will build the nuclear-powered submarines right here, at the Philly Shipyard in the United States. The U.S. shipbuilding industry will soon regain its vigor,” Trump wrote Oct. 30 on X.
But Lee pushed back on that characterization, saying South Korea — which has one of the world’s most efficient shipbuilding industries — intends to build the submarines domestically using homegrown technology.
“We’re not asking for construction or tech transfer. Just approval for fuel supply,” he said.
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