North Korea Criticizes US Over Seoul and Tokyo Nuclear Submarine Plans
Pyongyang accused Washington of encouraging South Korea and Japan to pursue nuclear-powered submarines and invoked the issue to defend further expansion of its own nuclear deterrent.
North Korea criticized the United States on Wednesday over discussions surrounding South Korean and Japanese interest in nuclear-powered submarines, arguing that Washington was encouraging regional allies to acquire the capability and undermining global nonproliferation efforts.
The criticism appeared in a commentary carried by the North's state-run Korean Central News Agency. An analyst quoted in the commentary accused the United States of trying to spur both Seoul and Tokyo toward nuclear submarine programs and portrayed Washington as a leading source of nuclear proliferation.
Pyongyang's statement followed remarks by a US Navy official during a meeting with reporters in Hawaii. The official said South Korea would need to present a clear operational rationale for pursuing nuclear-powered submarines rather than treating them as a symbol of national status. The official expressed a more favorable assessment of Japan's interest in the capability.
Nuclear-powered submarines can remain submerged for longer periods than conventional diesel-electric vessels and can operate over greater distances without surfacing frequently. Their propulsion systems do not automatically mean that they carry nuclear weapons, but the transfer of sensitive nuclear technology and material raises complex diplomatic and nonproliferation questions.
The North Korean commentary also invoked AUKUS, the security partnership among the United States, Britain and Australia. Under that arrangement, Australia is set to acquire nuclear-powered submarines with access to US propulsion technology. Pyongyang claimed that Washington was seeking to broaden a similar model to other allies, describing the regional discussion as an expansion of what it called an AUKUS-style framework.
North Korea further characterized the submarine ambitions of South Korea and Japan as destabilizing and linked them to a wider US strategy in the Asia-Pacific. It argued that the developments threatened the international nuclear nonproliferation regime.
The statement then used that assessment to justify strengthening North Korea's own nuclear forces. The analyst said Pyongyang should continue expanding its nuclear deterrent in both quality and quantity, reinforcing the North's established position that allied military cooperation warrants further weapons development.
The exchange highlights how submarine policy has become part of a broader regional security debate involving alliance strategy, advanced military technology and nuclear safeguards. For Seoul, any future move toward nuclear propulsion would require a clearly defined military mission as well as extensive technical and diplomatic negotiations with Washington. Pyongyang's response indicates that it is likely to present such discussions as evidence supporting its own military buildup.