According to polls, many people in South Korea believe they can no longer trust the US ‘nuclear umbrella’ to protect them from the DPRK, The New York Times reports. As a result, more and more residents of the country believe that it is time for Seoul to acquire its own nuclear arsenal.
Ever since the Korean War was halted by an uneasy armistice in 1953, South Koreans have lived under US protection, The New York Times reports. Washington has promised to defend them if necessary, even with nuclear weapons.
And last year, American leader Joe Biden strongly reaffirmed that commitment, promising that any nuclear attack by the DPRK would result in the destruction of the North Korean government.
But decades of American assurances have failed to deter Pyongyang from building a nuclear arsenal and its subsequent expansion. Moreover, under Kim Jong-un’s leadership, North Korea has begun to act more provocatively, testing missiles capable of reaching the United States.
Now more and more South Koreans are saying that their country needs to acquire its own nuclear weapons rather than relying on the United States for protection. This idea, while still rejected by the South Korean government, is increasingly becoming part of the mainstream political debate.
Polls show that many South Koreans say they can no longer trust the U.S. nuclear umbrella to protect them from North Korea. They doubt Washington would come to their aid in the event of a conflict with North Korea, especially now that Pyongyang is rushing to develop the capability to strike U.S. cities with nuclear warheads.
