Biden to pledge steps to deter nuclear attack on South Korea -officials
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[April 22, 2023]
By Steve Holland and David Brunnstrom
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - At a summit next week with South Korean leader
Yoon Suk Yeol U.S. President Joe Biden will pledge "substantial" steps
to underscore the U.S. commitment to deter a North Korean nuclear attack
on South Korea, a senior U.S. official said on Friday.
"We are working extraordinarily and intensively with the South Koreans
to take the necessary steps to buttress both public perception and the
reality of our commitments," the official told Reuters ahead of Yoon's
summit with Biden next Wednesday.
The official said it ranked as one of the greatest U.S. achievements
that a number of Indo-Pacific countries that could have built nuclear
weapons had chosen not to because of the protection of the so-called
U.S. nuclear umbrella.
"We have been very clear that our commitment to that nuclear deterrent
stands, is ironclad for South Korea," said the official, who did not
want to be identified by name.
"President Biden will ... be talking substantial steps to underscore
that, to update it, to make clear that everyone has little doubt of our
commitment to standing with South Korea, even in the face of provocation
from North Korea, saber rattling from Russia, and frankly ambitions for
a nuclear buildup on the part of China," he said.
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Yoon's week-long state visit from Monday comes at a time when more South
Koreans say their country should develop its nuclear arsenal to guard
against attack by nuclear-armed North Korea and its expanding arsenal of
missiles and bombs.
The official did not elaborate except to say the moves would involve "a
variety of things from certain kinds of computations, more with respect
to our actual activities, and some high-level engagements between the
United States and South Korea."
In a poll released on April 6 by the Asan Institute for Policy Studies
in Seoul, 64.3% of South Koreans supported developing nuclear weapons
with 33.3% opposed.
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U.S. President Joe Biden waves after
delivering remarks on "actions to advance environmental justice,"
prior to signing an executive order in the Rose Garden at the White
House in Washington, U.S., April 21, 2023. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
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The survey showed 52.9% of South Koreans were confident the United
States would use nuclear weapons to defend South Korea in the event
of a nuclear attack by North Korea. But the number dropped to 43.1%
when respondents were asked if they thought the U.S. would risk its
safety to defend South Korea, with 54.2% saying the U.S. would not
take such risks.
A second official said the United States welcomed the role South
Korea had played in supporting Ukraine and would "welcome additional
steps (It) might be willing to take."
"But we also recognize like every country they have to make those
decisions based on their own calculations," he said.
The official said North Korea's human rights situation, which Yoon
has made a focus would likely be a subject of discussion at the
summit.
Yoon, in an interview with Reuters on Tuesday, signaled for the
first time a softening in his position on providing weapons to
Ukraine, saying his government might not "insist only on
humanitarian or financial support" in the event of a large-scale
attack on civilians or a "situation the international community
cannot condone".
The first official said the summit, only the second state visit
under the Biden administration, reflected Biden's appreciation of
Yoon's strong leadership and his rapprochement with Japan, the other
key U.S. ally in northeast Asia.
Biden will also commend huge South Korean tech investment in the
United States since he took office, which was now approaching $100
million, the official said.
(Reporting by David Brunnstrom, Steve Holland and Costas Pitas;
Additional reporting by Choi Soo-hyang in Seoul; Editing by David
Gregorio)
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