President of the Republic of Korea Lee Jae Myung attends an official welcoming ceremony for US President Donald Trump at the Gyeongju National Museum in North Gyeongsang Province on October 29, 2025, on the sidelines of the APEC summit held in Gyeongju last year. — Photo courtesy of the Republic of Korea's Presidential office

SEOUL — The Republic of Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Thursday it has set up a dedicated team to support negotiations with Washington over Seoul's plan to develop nuclear-powered submarines, as the allies continue follow-up talks on agreements reached at recent summits.

According a notice sent to reporters, the new "nuclear-powered submarine negotiation team" has been established under the ministry's North America bureau to serve as a working channel for consultations with the US.

"The two countries agreed on the construction of nuclear-powered submarines during a summit in November last year," the ministry said, adding that "the nuclear-powered submarine negotiation team was established to discuss follow-up measures."

The unit, composed of a director-level team head and two staff members, is expected to support discussions on introducing nuclear-powered submarines and revising the bilateral nuclear cooperation framework, while preparing practical steps toward a potential agreement needed for the construction of the vessels.

The move comes as a US delegation is expected to visit the Republic of Korea (RoK) as early as late February or early March to begin consultations on security-related cooperation outlined in a joint fact sheet agreed by the two countries.

The ministry said the team was created to facilitate follow-up measures after the allies reached a broad understanding on cooperation related to nuclear-powered submarines during a summit last year.

The new unit will participate in a pan-government task force led by the RoK defence ministry, which was launched in December to coordinate interagency negotiations on the submarine project.

The RoK foreign ministry team is expected to act as a key diplomatic channel in consultations with Washington while supporting the task force's broader efforts.

Separately, the RoK defence ministry has also established a unit under its force planning bureau to advance efforts to acquire nuclear-powered submarines, and the two ministries are expected to coordinate through the government-wide task force.

The team is also expected to focus on preparing for a possible bilateral arrangement needed to support the submarine programme, including cooperation on securing fuel supply and other technical aspects.

The initiative is seen as part of follow-up efforts to implement agreements reached during summit meetings between RoK President Lee Jae Myung and US President Donald Trump last year, which included commitments on security and economic cooperation. — THE KOREA HERALD/ANN