South Korea’s national security advisor, Wi Sung-lac, stated that the country may need to conclude a separate bilateral agreement with the United States to secure the right to build nuclear submarines, Bloomberg reports.

Wi made the remarks during a press briefing upon arriving in the US, where preparatory work is underway for meetings with US senior officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

In the context of such an agreement, the South Korean national security advisor cited Australia as an example, noting that Canberra succeeded in obtaining an exception to the requirements of Section 91 of the US Atomic Energy Act by concluding a separate deal with Washington. This enabled Australia in 2021 to join the AUKUS agreement with the US and the UK, under which the country is to receive nuclear submarines.

Section 91 allows the US president to authorize the transfer of military nuclear materials, and Seoul sees this mechanism as a possible option to bypass the restrictions in the existing civil nuclear cooperation agreement with the United States, Wi noted.

The South Korean national security advisor added that his visit to the US will focus on accelerating the implementation of commitments outlined in the joint document signed at the end of October following the summit between South Korean President Lee Jae-Myung and US President Donald Trump. This includes, among other things, cooperation in enriched uranium, used fuel recycling, and nuclear submarines.

When asked whether the meetings would discuss the prospects for resuming dialogue with North Korea, Wi replied that he plans to exchange views on the broader regional situation and consult with the UN. He added that the current strength of the US-South Korea alliance provides an opportunity.

High-level negotiations are important to give this issue the necessary political weight. Ultimately, progress will be much faster when the president’s administration and the White House are directly involved, concluded South Korea’s national security advisor.