Ambassador Lim Gapsoo Appointed as Government Representative for Nuclear Cooperation Task Force
Difference in Pace Over Follow-up Measures to Leaders' Agreement
Park Yoonjoo, Kim Jina, and Wi Sungrak Visit U.S. to Persuade Counterparts
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is accelerating efforts, such as appointing a government representative, for follow-up consultations with the United States to expand South Korea's authority over uranium enrichment and spent nuclear fuel reprocessing. However, the U.S. side, which will be the negotiating counterpart, has shown little movement. While the South Korean government is emphasizing that this is a "bilateral agreement between the leaders of South Korea and the United States" and is calling for the prompt start of consultations, a difference in pace between the two countries is becoming apparent.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on December 24, a pan-governmental "(tentatively named) South Korea-U.S. Nuclear Cooperation Agreement Revision Task Force (TF)" is expected to be established early next year. The government representative will be Ambassador Lim Gapsoo to Romania. Ambassador Lim is considered an expert in disarmament, nonproliferation, and nuclear issues, having been dispatched as a nonproliferation specialist to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in 2016. In addition to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, related agencies such as the Ministry of Science and ICT, the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission, and the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute are also expected to participate in the TF.
In contrast to South Korea, the U.S. side has not shown any notable external preparations regarding the revision of the nuclear cooperation agreement. In response, senior officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including First Vice Minister Park Yoonjoo and Second Vice Minister Kim Jina, have recently visited the United States in succession, emphasizing the need to promptly begin "enrichment and reprocessing consultations" whenever the opportunity arises. It also appears that the recent visit to the United States by Wi Sungrak, Director of National Security at the Presidential Office, is not unrelated to these efforts.
Although the leaders of South Korea and the United States agreed to expand South Korea's authority over enrichment and reprocessing, there are still observations that nonproliferation concerns persist within the U.S. government. However, an official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained, "There may be differences in how each side handles the follow-up measures to the leaders' agreement, but there is a shared understanding on both sides that the overall direction is to move forward quickly." The official added, "Of course, we have explained to the U.S. side that we are setting up a dedicated organization," but also noted, "The U.S. side has its own circumstances, so they will review and prepare in their own way."
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