The South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed optimism on October 1 about advancing discussions on security issues, including nuclear-powered submarines and nuclear cooperation, in light of progress in strategic investment talks with the United States. However, the ministry reaffirmed its previous stance that no decisions have been made regarding investment or scale for the liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in Alaska mentioned by President Donald Trump.
During a regular briefing, spokesperson Park Du-sun stated, "During the Korea-U.S. summit at last month's UN General Assembly, the leaders welcomed the progress in U.S. investment. I understand they agreed to discuss security issues outlined in the joint explanatory document with urgency."
He added, "Based on this mutual understanding between the two leaders, we expect security consultations and various issues to progress through close communication."
Regarding President Trump's comments on the Alaska LNG project, the ministry interpreted it as a reaffirmation of the U.S. commitment to advancing the project. Park explained, "The Alaska LNG project means that we will begin reviewing it based on commercial viability and domestic legal procedures under the memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the two countries," and emphasized that no decisions have been made on investment or scale.
He noted that the strategic investment plan was announced after extensive discussions between the two nations, and any additional discussions needed regarding individual projects will continue between the two countries.
The joint explanatory document from the summit last November included key security and economic issues such as strategic investment in the U.S., acquisition of nuclear-powered submarines, nuclear fuel enrichment and reprocessing, and shipbuilding cooperation. As discussions on U.S. investment have prolonged, security consultations have not scheduled any follow-up meetings since the first meeting in June.
A ministry official predicted, "The announcement of the U.S. investment plan will provide momentum for discussions on specific schedules for security consultations."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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