The U.S. Supreme Court ruling declaring Trump's reciprocal tariffs illegal has raised concerns about the viability of the nuclear submarine and nuclear cooperation agreements between South Korea and the U.S.
The recent ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court found that the reciprocal tariffs imposed by former President Donald Trump were illegal, creating significant uncertainty regarding the Korea-U.S. agreements on nuclear-powered submarines and nuclear security cooperation. These agreements were established during last year’s Korea-U.S. summit, focusing on mutual tariffs and security cooperation, including the introduction of nuclear submarines and investment from South Korea. The ruling generates doubts about the commitments made in this regard, especially with Trump’s administration previously pressuring for delays in South Korean investments, thereby complicating the progression of these security negotiations.
Following the Supreme Court's decision, concerns have intensified regarding the timeline and execution of the security cooperation agreements, which had initially been expected to commence negotiations in March. The U.S. delegation's planned visit to South Korea for discussions on security cooperation is now uncertain, pending new developments influenced by the Supreme Court ruling. Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin, after his recent talks with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, noted that a negotiating team covering various U.S. departments is affirmatively scheduled to visit South Korea in February, further underscoring the complexity introduced by the court ruling.
Experts like Professor Lee Byung-cheol from Kyungnam University express anxiety that progress on nuclear submarines and nuclear proliferation and reprocessing could face even greater challenges due to this court ruling. This situation also suggests that the security agreements are directly tied to trade and tariff discussions; thus any significant changes in the tariff context likely impact the viability of the security partnerships in place. Given that these accords represent crucial achievements from the Yoon Suk-yeol government's negotiations with the U.S., the implication of this ruling may lead to intensified scrutiny and reflection on the future of these agreements.
