Joseph Yoon: "High Possibility of President Trump Attending APEC Summit"

Joseph Yun, Charg? d'Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Korea, said that "President Donald Trump is very likely to attend" the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit to be held in Gyeongju in the second half of this year.

At a forum hosted by the Sejong Institute on the 11th, Yun emphasized, "I am confident that President Trump will attend APEC." He also predicted a high possibility that President Xi Jinping of China will attend, given that China will be the APEC chair country next year.

Meanwhile, in response to a question about whether the Trump administration might take a flexible stance on South Korea's independent nuclear armament, Yun said, "The U.S. has not officially reviewed this issue yet," but noted that "there are several stages and options regarding South Korea's nuclear armament."

He mentioned options such as nuclear redeployment, NATO-style nuclear sharing, and independent nuclear armament, adding, "In Washington, there might be discussions about allowing a certain level of uranium enrichment and plutonium reprocessing similar to what is permitted for Japan as another stage."

He further stated, "If South Korea demands nuclear-related rights at the same level as Japan, an amendment to the U.S.-Korea Atomic Energy Agreement would be necessary," and added, "On the other hand, if South Korea wants tactical nuclear redeployment or NATO-style nuclear sharing, it would be more difficult to achieve."

Yun, emphasizing that this was his personal opinion, conveyed that "there is a growing voice that North Korea will not give up its nuclear weapons, and accordingly, South Korea must prepare." This suggests that even though the Trump administration has not yet formally begun policy review, there is room to view the possibility of amending the Atomic Energy Agreement more flexibly than before.