US has added South Korea to the list of "sensitive" countries amid nuclear issues
Kyiv • UNN
The US has designated South Korea as a "sensitive" country. Seoul has expressed concern and is in talks with Washington.

The U.S. Department of Energy has designated ally South Korea a "sensitive" country, a spokesperson said on Friday, after the South Korean president briefly imposed martial law and amid talk of Seoul potentially developing nuclear weapons, Reuters reports, UNN writes.
Details
The administration of then-US President Joe Biden placed South Korea at the lowest level on the list of sensitive and other designated countries in January, shortly before Biden left office, the Department of Energy said in a written response to Reuters' requests.
The ministry did not explain why the Asian country was added to the list, and did not indicate that US President Donald Trump is inclined to reverse the measure. A spokesman said Seoul does not face new restrictions on bilateral science and technology cooperation.
The designation will take effect on April 15, according to media reports.
The South Korean Foreign Ministry said the government takes the matter seriously and is in close contact with Washington.
"We will actively negotiate to ensure that there is no negative impact on energy, scientific and technological cooperation between South Korea and the United States," the ministry said in a statement.
The Department of Energy's list of vulnerable countries includes China, Taiwan, Israel, Russia, Iran and North Korea, with Tehran and Pyongyang designated as "terrorist," according to a 2017 document published on the ministry's website.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and then-Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun are among the officials who raised the issue that Seoul would be forced to develop nuclear weapons amid concerns about Pyongyang's weapons program and concerns about the alliance with the United States.
Yoon and Kim were charged with rebellion over Yoon's six-hour declaration of martial law in December. Yoon was impeached and his presidential powers suspended while the court decides whether to remove him from office.
Yoon abandoned the rhetoric about the nuclear weapons program after talks with Biden on a 2023 agreement under which Washington would provide Seoul with more information about US plans to deter and respond to a nuclear incident in the region. In response, Seoul reaffirmed its pledge not to develop its own nuclear bomb and said it would abide by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which it signed.
However, this proved insufficient to dispel doubts about US defense commitments, which fueled calls for a South Korean nuclear arsenal, the publication writes.
Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul said last month that nuclear weapons are not "off the table," although it is premature to talk about such a plan.
"Given that the international situation is developing in unpredictable directions, this is a principled response that we must prepare for all possible scenarios," Cho said at a parliamentary hearing.
Daryl Kimball, executive director of the non-profit Arms Control Association, said that in light of such "provocative" statements, South Korea poses a proliferation risk, and the US Department of Energy has wisely included the country on its list.
"Including the Republic of Korea on the list of countries sensitive to proliferation should rule out any possibility of South Korea requesting US approval for uranium enrichment and spent fuel reprocessing... for the production of nuclear weapons," Kimball said.
Working out this designation has caused concern in Seoul. Cho told parliament on Tuesday that his ministry had not received official notification from the Biden administration and only learned of the possible designation from an informal tip.
Countries may be included on the US Department of Energy's list for national security, nuclear non-proliferation or support of terrorism reasons, although inclusion does not necessarily indicate hostile relations with the United States.
"There are currently no new restrictions on bilateral scientific and technical cooperation with the Republic of Korea," the US Department of Energy said. - The Department of Energy looks forward to working with the ROK to advance our common interests".
Although the designation does not prohibit scientific or technical cooperation, visits to listed countries and cooperation are subject to prior internal review, the ministry said.