The United States will share military technology to allow South Korea to build a nuclear-powered submarine, President Donald Trump revealed this Wednesday, October 29, after meeting with his South Korean counterpart.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung emphasized to Trump during their meeting that the objective was to modernize the alliance with the US, mentioning plans to increase military spending in order to reduce the financial burden on the United States.
The South Korean leader said there may have been a misunderstanding when they last spoke in August about nuclear-powered submarines, saying his government was looking for nuclear fuel, not weapons.
Lee said that if South Korea were equipped with nuclear-powered submarines, it could aid U.S. activities in the region.
Trump already highlighted on his Truth Social network that the alliance between the two countries is “stronger than ever” and that, therefore, he authorized the construction of a nuclear-powered submarine, instead of the “old-fashioned and much less agile diesel submarines they currently have”.
Trump stated, in another publication, that the country would build its nuclear-powered submarine at the Philadelphia shipyard, acquired last year by the South Korean group Hanwha.
It was unclear what the size or cost of the submarine project would be, but South Korea had said during negotiations with Trump that it committed to investing $150 billion in US shipbuilding capabilities.
U.S. nuclear submarine technology is widely considered some of the most sensitive and highly protected the U.S. military possesses.
The US has been extremely protective of this knowledge, and even a recently announced agreement with close allies the United Kingdom and Australia to help the latter acquire nuclear submarine technology does not provide for the direct transfer of this technology.
Trump’s publication on social media came before his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, whose country has nuclear submarines, and after North Korea revealed, in March, for the first time, the construction of a nuclear-powered submarine.
It is a weapons system that could pose a major threat to the security of South Korea and the USA.
While Trump visited South Korea, North Korea announced today that it has successfully tested cruise missiles, the latest demonstration of its growing military capabilities.
The republican also announced in a publication that South Korea agreed to pay the US 350 billion dollars (301 billion euros, at the current exchange rate) to reduce customs tariffs imposed by the United States.
“In addition, they agreed to buy our oil and gas in large quantities, and investments in our country by wealthy South Korean companies and businesspeople will exceed 600 billion dollars (517 billion euros).”
The South Korean President’s chief advisor had said today that the agreement includes tariffs on automobiles and details South Korea’s investment commitments.
According to Kim Yong-beom, the agreement provides for a reduction to 15% of customs duties on reciprocal tariffs on automobiles.
It also foresees a South Korean investment plan in the United States of 350 billion dollars (300.6 billion euros, at current exchange rates), “of which 200 billion in cash”.
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