[Exclusive] Government to Restart HLBC in Second Half... Launch of Korea-US 'Nuclear Alliance'

US and South Korea to Begin Full-Scale HLBC Talks Next Month... Plan to Restart in Second Half of This Year
Suspended in 2018 Due to IP Disputes... Full Meeting Expected After 4 Years
US-Korea 'Nuclear Alliance' Also Intensifies... Likely to Compete as 'One Team' in Bidding War

Bright Expressions of the South Korea-US Leaders
(Pyeongtaek=Yonhap News) Photo by Seo Myeong-gon = President Yoon Suk-yeol and US President Joe Biden visited the Korea Air and Space Operations Center (KAOC) at Osan Air Base on the afternoon of the 22nd, wearing bright expressions. 2022.5.22
seephoto@yna.co.kr
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[Asia Economy Sejong=Reporter Lee Jun-hyung] The Korea-US High-Level Bilateral Commission on Nuclear Energy (HLBC), agreed upon at the recent Korea-US summit, will be reactivated in the second half of this year. This marks the first time in four years since HLBC was suspended in 2018 due to intellectual property disputes. The government plans to coordinate key agendas, including the schedule for the HLBC plenary meeting and nuclear power plant exports, with the United States starting next month.

According to related ministries on the 31st, the government will intensify discussions with the US regarding HLBC from next month. This is to hold the 3rd HLBC plenary meeting within the second half of this year. The government also plans to coordinate detailed agendas for the next meeting, such as nuclear power plant exports, with the US. A government official stated, "HLBC is an issue agreed upon for 'prompt' convening at the recent Korea-US summit," adding, "The specific schedule will become visible soon."

HLBC is a permanent consultative body for Korea-US cooperation in the nuclear energy sector. It was established under the revised and enacted Korea-US Nuclear Agreement during the Park Geun-hye administration in 2015. Korea and the US have operated four working groups under HLBC, including ▲Spent Nuclear Fuel Management ▲Promotion of Nuclear Power Plant Exports and Export Control Cooperation ▲Nuclear Security, and have pursued various cooperative projects.

However, HLBC was suspended in 2018, causing cooperative projects to lose momentum. This was due to conflicts between Korea Electric Power Corporation and US-based Westinghouse in 2017 over intellectual property rights related to the Korean-designed nuclear reactor (APR-1400), which escalated into a diplomatic tension between the two countries. The nuclear phase-out policy, which the Moon Jae-in administration actively pursued that same year, dealt a decisive blow. Ultimately, HLBC ceased to function after the 2nd plenary meeting held in 2018.

The new government has been focusing on HLBC even before its inauguration. Initially, the reactivation of HLBC was a campaign promise of President Yoon Suk-yeol, who pledged to reverse the nuclear phase-out policy. HLBC serves as a platform for Korea-US nuclear cooperation and carries symbolic significance as it was suspended during the Moon Jae-in administration.

HLBC is entering its ‘second phase’ as envisioned by the new government. The Korea-US leaders recently agreed to reactivate HLBC during their summit. Both Korea and the US plan to utilize HLBC as a core pillar of their ‘nuclear alliance.’

With HLBC’s reactivation, Korea-US nuclear cooperation is expected to accelerate. The government is focusing HLBC on ‘nuclear power plant exports.’ The Biden administration, aiming to reclaim its status as a leading nuclear power, shares a similar stance with the Korean government. Consequently, there is a high possibility that Korea and the US will form a ‘one team’ to jointly bid on the Polish nuclear power plant project currently being pursued by Korea.