South Korean public support for nuclearisation is the highest it has ever been, says Robert Kelly of Pusan National University.
A TV screen shows an image of a North Korea n missile, during a news programme at the Seoul Railway Station in South Korea on Jul 28, 2023. BUSAN, South Korea : Earlier last year, South Korea n President Yoon Suk Yeol suggested there may come a time when Seoul may have to consider developing aAlthough South Korea n officials were quick to walk back on Mr Yoon’s comments, there was no putting the genie back into the bottle.
That places a lot of trust in the US to come through for South Korea in a potentially nuclear situation. South Korea’s ongoing nuclear interest suggests that trust has eroded. Mr Kim’s father was in charge when the North conducted its first nuclear test in 2006. But those previous Kims did not build a long-range missile force or that many nuclear warheads. Perhaps they were technologically constrained, or perhaps they were hoping restraint would help them capture a deal with Washington and Seoul. Whatever the reasons, the current Kim is not so restrained.
We can also see hesitation in the Western response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The US and its North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies have not fully supported Ukraine, because they fear Russian nuclear escalation. Ukraine and its supporters have complained bitterly that Russian nuclear threats have unnecessarily crippled Ukraine’s defence. One might imagine a similar US hesitation in a Korean scenario.
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