President Yoon Seok-yeol revealed his opposition to North Korean nuclear disarmament on the 28th, and began to collide with the’reaffirmation of the will to talk with North Korea’ in the joint statement of the Korea-US summit on the 26th by President Biden’s nuclear disarmament and NATO disarmament negotiations.
President Yoon said at Harvard University on the 28th, “The Washington Declaration does not recognize North Korea as a nuclear power, but rather denies North Korea possessing nuclear weapons.
At a press conference two days ago, President Yoon said, “South Korea and the United States will have an immediate summit meeting in the event of a nuclear attack by North Korea, and through this, take a swift, overwhelming, and decisive response using all the capabilities of the alliance, including the US nuclear weapons. We promised,” he said in the event of North Korea's use of nuclear weapons, saying, “Nuclear war is imminent.”
While President Seok-Yeol Yoon announced recognition of North Korea as a “nuclear power” and “use of US nuclear weapons in retaliation,” President Biden spoke of “progress in extended deterrence,” and the Washington Declaration was clear as “mobilization of U.S. capabilities, including nuclear weapons, and call for nuclear submarines.” gap emerged.
On the 18th, at the NATO annual disarmament meeting held in Washington, the United States announced a resolution calling for China to join nuclear disarmament.
On the same day, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg commented on China's responsibility for nuclear disarmament, saying, "China has an international responsibility as a world power, and will benefit from the increased transparency, predictability and safety of disarmament agreements." ”he said.
The United Nations Conference on Disarmament met in Geneva, Switzerland in February with representatives from 65 countries around the world and urged China to join the arms control agreement, concerned about the possibility of China's strengthening of its nuclear strategy.
A joint statement from the Korea-US summit said, “President Biden and President Yoon reaffirm their commitment to diplomacy with North Korea as the only means to achieve lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula, and urge North Korea to return to negotiations. The two leaders agreed to create a better future for all members of the Korean Peninsula and support a free and peaceful unified Korean Peninsula.”
At a joint press conference at the summit, President Biden said, “North Korea’s nuclear attack on the United States, its allies, or partners is unacceptable,” and said of the North Korean nuclear attack, “It will cause the end of the regime,” and “We do not accept such actions. will take, and this will strengthen extended deterrence against North Korea,” suggesting a “nuclear disarmament approach.”
In a speech at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Public Administration on the 28th, President Yoon said that the 'Washington Declaration' had no choice but to be upgraded from the conventional weapons-based mutual defense treaty in 1953 to a ROK-US mutual defense concept that now includes nuclear weapons. switched to the main axis of defense.
The Washington Declaration reaffirmed that “any nuclear attack on South Korea by North Korea will be met with an immediate, overwhelming and decisive response. President Biden emphasized that the US extended deterrence against Korea is supported by mobilizing all US capabilities, including nuclear weapons. Furthermore, the United States will further enhance the regular visibility of US strategic assets to South Korea, as evidenced by the planned future US strategic nuclear submarine port call in South Korea, and will expand and deepen cooperation between the two militaries.” Instead, it was specified as a “strategic nuclear submarine calling in Korea.”
President Yoon negotiates 'US nuclear sharing' in response to 'North Korea's nuclear use', gradually changing his stance to the US Congress speech and Harvard University speech after the Washington Declaration admitting North Korea's nuclear possession, keeping a distance from the Biden Democratic administration's negotiations on North Korea's nuclear disarmament. It is revealing the Republican Party's strategy of "attacking nuclear weapons on a non-nuclear country."
<See Seok-Yeol Yun’s “Use of US Nuclear Weapons” Biden’s “Progress in Deterrence” Declaration “Nuclear Submarine Call”, dated April 27, 2023>