How domestic politics and geopolitics influence South Korea’s nuclear calculus



Analysis How domestic politics and geopolitics influence South Korea’s nuclear calculus Yoon Suk-yeol appeared to back a nuclear program if DPRK threat worsens, but ROK is far from making this a reality John LeeJanuary 12, 2023 SHARE COPY LINK FACEBOOK X LINKEDIN MASTODON Two mobile carriers prepare to launch South Korean Hyunmoo II missiles, July 2017, via Wikimedia Commons President Yoon Suk-yeol said Wednesday during a joint policy briefing with his foreign and defense ministers that if the North Korean nuclear threat becomes more serious, South Korea could acquire and deploy its own tactical nuclear weapons in response. But he immediately caveated that by saying that it is important for the ROK to choose “realistic” options, such as those under discussion with Washington on joint planning involving U.S. nuclear assets. Seemingly sensing the hot-button nature of Yoon’s comment, the presidential office sent a notice to journalists informing them that Yoon remains “adamant in his adherence to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation © Korea Risk Group. All rights reserved. No part of this content may be reproduced, distributed, or used for commercial purposes without prior written permission from Korea Risk Group. LATEST ANALYSIS 01Trump’s Alaska LNG claim shows who really runs the US-South Korea alliance 02South Korea’s missile defense push raises new questions over wartime stocks 03South Korea bank hacks expose weak links beyond core financial systems 04Lee-Zelensky feud exposes South Korea’s widening Ukraine policy dilemma 05Lee Jae Myung’s ‘pacemaker’ strategy tests South Korea’s leverage with Trump 06Trump’s Korea investment victory lap masks safeguards Seoul still controls 07North Korean POW dispute tests Seoul-Kyiv trust and future Ukraine policy 08South Korea’s CPTPP push exposes the cost of turning trade gains into consensus

Analysis

How domestic politics and geopolitics influence South Korea’s nuclear calculus

Yoon Suk-yeol appeared to back a nuclear program if DPRK threat worsens, but ROK is far from making this a reality

John LeeJanuary 12, 2023

How domestic politics and geopolitics influence South Korea’s nuclear calculus

Two mobile carriers prepare to launch South Korean Hyunmoo II missiles, July 2017, via Wikimedia Commons

President Yoon Suk-yeol said Wednesday during a joint policy briefing with his foreign and defense ministers that if the North Korean nuclear threat becomes more serious, South Korea could acquire and deploy its own tactical nuclear weapons in response.

But he immediately caveated that by saying that it is important for the ROK to choose “realistic” options, such as those under discussion with Washington on joint planning involving U.S. nuclear assets.

Seemingly sensing the hot-button nature of Yoon’s comment, the presidential office sent a notice to journalists informing them that Yoon remains “adamant in his adherence to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation

How domestic politics and geopolitics influence South Korea’s nuclear calculus

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John Lee