Why did North Korea accuse the United States over South Korea and Japan’s nuclear-powered submarine plans?

A KCNA commentary said Washington was using the issue to instigate Seoul and Tokyo to acquire nuclear submarines. It also accused the United States of acting as the major chieftain of worldwide nuclear proliferation.

How did North Korea connect the submarine issue to AUKUS and its own nuclear policy?

The commentary said Washington was using AUKUS to extend nuclear submarine technology to allies such as South Korea and Japan. It also argued that North Korea must strengthen its nuclear deterrent in both quality and quantity without delay.

N. Korea slams US over S. Korea, Japan's nuclear submarine push

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Summary

North Korea on Wednesday criticized the United States over South Korea and Japan’s push for nuclear-powered submarines. A KCNA commentary said Washington was trying to instigate both countries and called the U.S. the major chieftain of worldwide nuclear proliferation. It also linked the issue to AUKUS and said North Korea must strengthen its nuclear deterrent without delay.

Key Facts

A U.S. Navy official in Hawaii on Thursday said Seoul needs a clear operational rationale for nuclear-powered submarines rather than treating them as a status symbol, while taking a more favorable view of Tokyo’s push.
The North Korean commentary said discussions were intended to instigate South Korea and Japan to possess nuclear submarines.
The commentary described AUKUS as a security partnership involving the United States, Britain and Australia, and said it had enabled Australia to obtain nuclear-powered submarines using U.S. propulsion technology.
North Korea said the push by Seoul and Tokyo for nuclear-powered submarines was reckless and a threat to the global nuclear non-proliferation regime.
The analyst argued that North Korea must bolster its nuclear war deterrent means both in quality and quantity without the slightest stagnation and stalemate.

By Yonhap

Published Sep 16, 2026 10:53 am KST

The U.S. nuclear-powered submarine USS Sringfield arrives at a naval base in Busan, Feb. 26, 2023. Courtesy of United States Pacific Fleet

North Korea on Wednesday accused the United States of instigating South Korea and Japan to push for acquiring nuclear-powered submarines, using the criticism to justify its own nuclear buildup.

The North made the criticism after a U.S. Navy official assessed Seoul and Tokyo's pursuit of nuclear-powered submarines in a meeting with reporters in Hawaii on Thursday.

The official said Seoul needs a clear operational rationale for pursuing nuclear-powered submarines, rather than treating them as a "status symbol," while voicing a more favorable view of Tokyo's push to acquire them.

In a commentary carried by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), a North Korean analyst on international affairs claimed discussions were "intended to instigate" both countries "to possess nuclear submarines," and accused Washington of serving as "the major chieftain of the worldwide nuclear proliferation."

The analyst also claimed Washington was using AUKUS, a security partnership comprising the U.S., Britain and Australia, to extend nuclear submarine technology to its allies, like South Korea and Japan.

"The reality goes to prove that Washington's plan for 'AUKUS 2.0,' which allows the transfer of nuclear technology for munitions to non-nuclear allies, has entered the phase of full-scale expansion," he wrote.

AUKUS, announced in 2021 and signed in 2024, has paved the way for Australia to have its own nuclear-powered submarines using U.S. propulsion technology, enabled by a U.S. exemption allowing the transfer of sensitive nuclear material. The pact is often seen as a possible benchmark for Seoul's future agreement with Washington.

North Korea also called the push by Seoul and Tokyo for nuclear-powered submarines "reckless acts" that "show what dangerous extent the U.S. military adventurism to contain its rival states in the Asia-Pacific region by setting up its allies as shock brigades has reached."

Calling this a threat to the global nuclear non-proliferation regime, he argued North Korea must "bolster up its nuclear war deterrent means both in quality and quantity without the slightest stagnation and stalemate."

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