Seoul rebuffs possible nuke weapons deployment

By Jun Ji-hye

The government rebuffed Wednesday calls from U.S. experts for the need to place tactical nuclear weapons (TNW) on the Korean Peninsula.

“Korea has declared the denuclearization of the peninsula,” said an official of the Ministry of National Defense on the condition of anonymity. “We never consider having tactical nuclear weapons here.”

The official added that it is not proper for the government to respond to remarks made by civilians, although they are experts in the relevant area.

The statement came after former Pentagon official and executive director of the Nonproliferation Policy Education Center, Henry Sokolski, indicated the need to reassign TNW on the peninsula amid escalating nuclear threats from North Korea.

During a discussion held at the Heritage Foundation in Washington, Sokolski said he worked at the Pentagon in early 1990s when the United States withdrew TNW from the peninsula. At the time, he believed deterrence against Pyongyang could be displayed without such weapons, he said.

He claimed that he has met with Seoul’s government officials, and that the South Korean people now want such weapons on the peninsula.

He went on to say that the U.S. Forces Korea needs to defend South Korea from all possible attacks, adding that once the weapons are on the peninsula, Washington should take extra care to manage them.

The main topic of the discussion was his latest work “Underestimated: Our Not So Peaceful Nuclear Future,” which claims addressing the nuclear crisis in North Korea and the problem of nuclear terrorism is all that matters.

Observers believe that Sokolski, a noted nonproliferation advocate, made the surprising arguments based on the belief that the U.S. allies Japan and South Korea could move to arm themselves with nuclear weapons to cope with North Korea’s strengthened nuclear capability.

It was evidenced by his reference to President Park Geun-hye’s recent interview with The Wall Street Journal during which she said a new nuclear test by North Korea could have a “domino” effect by providing its neighbors with the excuse to arm themselves with nuclear weapons.

During a previous speech at the Hudson Institute, Sokolski also said, “We (the United States) have to worry about our allies, too,” referring to Seoul and Tokyo.

Clark Murdock, a senior analyst of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, has also produced a report, indicating that TNW need to be placed on the peninsula.

He argued that differentiated nuclear forces should forward deploy in South Korea to block the North’s nuclear development and provide allied nations with a nuclear umbrella.

Follow Jun Ji-hye on Twitter @TheKopJihye