Thread by @koreanforeigner

"The US government has made it a rule not to transfer fuel for nuclear-powered submarines to *any country,* regardless of whether they are allies or not – in line with its principle of non-proliferation."

That's fine. SKorea has other options.

scmp.com/week-asia/poli…

Asking the US to help SKorea with starting its own nuclear submarine program was always going to get a no. It couldn't hurt to ask, of course. But now that the US has said no (it still can't hurt to keep asking), SKorea can also choose to shop elsewhere.

The French were willing to help SKorea with its nuclear program in the 1970s but were stopped from doing so by the US. I don't see why the French wouldn't be willing to help now, or why the French would be more keen to listen to Washington either. The US ain't what it used to be.

If not the French, SKorea can ask Russia for help. Last I checked, the Russian government appears to be willing to sell just about anything to just about anyone.

Hell, if it comes to it, SKorea could even ask Brazil for help. They've got a nuclear submarine program, too.

The fact that the SKorean government sends its officials to the US first to ask for help with starting our nuclear submarine program is really a courtesy call. It's our way of showing respect and deference to a powerful ally.

But this isn't 1975 anymore.

SKorea isn't as weak as it used to be in 1975, and the US isn't the only one with all the cards anymore. The world has changed. And while the ROK-US alliance remains our backbone, if the US isn't willing to offer assistance with one thing, we can shop elsewhere.

It's not just NKorea that SKorea has to guard against. We also have to keep an eye out for China. And if things get really bad, it's not impossible that we might have to guard ourselves against Japan, too. So even if the US said no, that's not going to stop SKorea from trying.

But if for some reason the rest of the world believes that SKorea having a nuclear submarine program is just a step too far even though no one bats an eye at Brazil having its own nuclear submarines, we can always just deploy more rockets and missiles.

washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pac…