trump Administration Shift on South Korea Nuclear Capabilities Sparks Debate
GYEONGJU, SOUTH KOREA – A move by the Trump administration to allow south Korea to enrich uranium, revealed during President Donald Trump’s meeting with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung at the Asia-pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders’ summit on Oct. 29, 2025, is reshaping the nuclear landscape and prompting both optimism and concern among security experts. The decision,a significant departure from decades of U.S.policy, could grant Seoul a “latent nuke capability,” allowing the nation to rapidly develop nuclear weapons if deemed necesary.
for decades, the united states has discouraged nuclear proliferation on the Korean Peninsula, maintaining a strong security alliance with South Korea – including the deployment of U.S. troops and a nuclear umbrella – as a deterrent against North Korea’s nuclear ambitions. However, the shift signals a potential recalibration of that strategy, driven by evolving geopolitical dynamics and concerns about the reliability of U.S. commitment.
“This is a big growth in the alliance and a big change in U.S. policy,” said Victor Cha, a Georgetown government professor and Korea expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.He believes the project is “good for (South) Korea and good for the alliance.”
The agreement centers on South Korea establishing the ability to enrich uranium for the first time. Nuclear latency, according to weapons experts, exists when a country possesses the knowledge, technology, and infrastructure to quickly build nuclear weapons should the need arise, without actively pursuing their development.
Experts suggest South Korea may be seeking this latency due to an increasingly uncertain relationship with the United States. “This is a big development in the alliance,” Cha stated.
The move is also seen as a potential countermeasure to growing threats from both China and North Korea, bolstering Seoul’s naval power through enhanced submarine capabilities. However, the decision isn’t without its critics. Some experts warn that pursuing nuclear latency could provoke north Korea and invite international sanctions, possibly damaging South Korea’s economy and high-tech industries due to violations of treaties against nuclear weapons development.
“Not all experts believe that it would be good for South Korea to build nuclear weapons,” the report notes, “because the move could provoke North Korea or harm the global economy.”
The submarine agreement, by boosting nuclear latency and enhancing Seoul’s naval power against threats from China and North Korea, could strengthen the alliance.
Contributing: Reuters