S. Korea to Deploy Locally Built Nuclear Submarine by Late-2030s

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South Korea unveiled a roadmap to develop nuclear-powered submarines and deploy the first vessel by the late 2030s, as President Lee Jae Myung convened a new defense strategy council Tuesday focused on strengthening the nation’s military autonomy.

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(Bloomberg) — South Korea unveiled a roadmap to develop nuclear-powered submarines and deploy the first vessel by the late 2030s, as President Lee Jae Myung convened a new defense strategy council Tuesday focused on strengthening the nation’s military autonomy.

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The Ministry of Defense released what it described as the country’s first comprehensive basic plan for nuclear-powered submarines under a project dubbed “Jangbogo-N.” The plan calls for domestic construction, the use of low-enriched uranium fuel and coordination with the US and the International Atomic Energy Agency on non-proliferation safeguards.

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Speaking at the inaugural meeting of the Future Defense Strategy Committee at the Navy’s submarine command in Jinhae, President Lee said the submarines would symbolize South Korea’s determination to take responsibility for peace and security on the Korean Peninsula.

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The announcement marks the most official public step yet toward formalizing a push that gained momentum after Lee secured President Donald Trump’s backing for South Korea’s nuclear-powered submarine ambitions during a summit last year. Progress since then appears to have been slow with the sensitive issue of supplying nuclear fuel for the submarines among the complications.

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Trump said in October that South Korea would build a nuclear submarine at a shipyard in Philadelphia, but Seoul has maintained any such vessels should be built domestically. Officials from both countries also considered a plan for Korean-led joint production, potentially across sites in both countries, of subs for both South Korea and the US. 

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The defense ministry said it aims to launch the first submarine in the mid-2030s and deploy it in the late 2030s. Officials framed the project as both a response to North Korea’s submarine-based nuclear threats and a long-term industrial initiative tied to shipbuilding, nuclear energy and defense manufacturing.

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Lee also used Tuesday’s meeting to discuss the early transfer of wartime operational control from the US military and the transition toward an artificial intelligence and drone-centered military structure, calling wartime operational control a core element of achieving self-reliant national defense.

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—With assistance from Alastair Gale.

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(Adds background on Trump remarks and talks between the US and South Korea)

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