Attended National Assembly Forum on the 11th, Delivered Keynote Speech
"We Must Present Our Cards to the U.S. Based on Self-Reliance"
Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, who had been emphasizing 'economic growth' day after day, has now set his sights on 'security.' Mayor Oh claims that in negotiations with the Trump administration, South Korea could present 'nuclear potential' and 'independent nuclear armament' as cards.
On the 11th, Mayor Oh Se-hoon delivered a keynote speech on the theme of 'Self-Reliant Korea, South Korea's Security Strategy' at the 'Security Cooperation Strategy Forum for Securing Nuclear Potential' held at the National Assembly Members' Office Building.
First, Mayor Oh described U.S. President Donald Trump's leadership as 'transactional leadership,' suggesting that South Korea can give what it must and take what it can. He said, "From President Trump's perspective, there must be something to give and take for negotiations to be possible," adding, "What cards do we have? We have an economy ranked around the top 10 globally, industrial technology, and geopolitical assets."
Mayor Oh referred to South Korea as the "money machine" for the Trump administration. He argued that South Korea should bear a certain level of increased defense cost-sharing in line with its grown national power and economic strength, enabling it to present the 'cards' it desires. Mayor Oh said, "A good negotiation, or a 'good deal,' means that the money machine, South Korea, gives what it must," adding, "We cannot concede on core national security capabilities, but for other areas such as U.S. investments, tariffs, and defense cost-sharing, practical and transactional negotiations are necessary."
As a card that could be presented in this way, Mayor Oh emphasized the 'theory of nuclear self-reliance.' He stated, "At that time, we also had nuclear development, and unless North Korea denuclearized together with us, there was no way to make North Korea give up its nuclear development," adding, "Independent nuclear development is the most effective and appropriate, but reasonably, raising nuclear potential to the level of Japan could be an alternative."
Previously, Mayor Oh had advocated for independent nuclear development since his 2019 book, Future. After resuming office as Seoul mayor, he has consistently argued for securing 'nuclear potential.' Nuclear potential means having the capability to quickly arm with nuclear weapons without directly manufacturing them and violating the NPT.
On this day, Mayor Oh said, "Given the U.S. administration's policy of strictly limiting nuclear proliferation, no matter how hard we try, the academic consensus is that there is no reason for them to allow us uranium enrichment or spent fuel reprocessing at the level of Japan," but he emphasized, "However, my position is that if we give what we must, why can't we receive within the scope of the NPT? We must have such an option." Currently, Japan can enrich uranium below 20%, and with U.S. agreement, can enrich to higher levels above 20%. Spent fuel reprocessing is also permitted. In contrast, South Korea must obtain U.S. consent even for low-enriched uranium below 20%, and fuel reprocessing is prohibited.
In addition to defense cost-sharing, Mayor Oh proposed that SMR (Small Modular Reactor) technology could also be used as a negotiation card. He explained, "For the U.S. to secure AI technology, it needs semiconductors and data centers, which require enormous power. In that context, SMRs could be a great alternative," adding, "The U.S. would want to utilize South Korea's excellent SMR technology, so this could also be a good negotiation card."
Mayor Oh predicted that South Korea's possession of nuclear potential would not provoke backlash from neighboring countries such as Russia and China. After the forum, he told reporters, "Given that South Korea is already in military confrontation with North Korea, which possesses nuclear missiles, I believe that the international community's excessive concern or opposition to South Korea securing rights to peaceful use of nuclear energy guaranteed by the NPT at the level of Japan is a matter of our sovereignty."
Furthermore, he said that in the worst-case scenario, 'independent nuclear development' could also be considered. In response to related questions, Mayor Oh said, "Even if we develop (nuclear weapons), it would be conditional development based on the premise that if North Korea abandons its nuclear weapons, we would also abandon ours," adding, "Currently, the realistic option is to enhance nuclear potential." He further added, "In the worst case, we are in a position to consider conditional nuclear armament theory as well."
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