The nuclear development of North Korea is a significant concern for the international community.
It threatens the peace and security of the Korean Peninsula, Northeast Asia, and the international community.
Additionally, it undermines the foundation of the international non-proliferation regime.
In January 2021, North Korea declared its objective of “developing the nuclear force and strengthening defense capabilities” in the Eighth Congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea and has since been continuing its missile provocations, which include hypersonic glide vehicles and submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs).
Since 2022, North Korea has launched more than 100 ballistic missiles, marking an unprecedented level of provocations.
In September 2022, North Korea adopted the law on policy on nuclear forces, which contains an aggressive nuclear doctrine.
One year later, the nuclear forces policy was incorporated into its constitution in September 2023.
To address North Korea’s nuclear and weapons of mass destruction threat, South Korea has proposed studying the US Department of Defense’s Cooperative Threat Reduction (CTR) program.
Preventing nuclear proliferation
According to South Korea’s Ministry of National Defense (MND), South Korea and the US should investigate the effectiveness of the CTR program, implemented by the former Soviet Union in the early 1990s, in preventing nuclear proliferation.
Professor Hwang Il-do of the Korea National Diplomatic Academy said in a keynote speech at the “2024 Seoul Arms Control Verification Policy Development Seminar,” co-hosted by the Defense Ministry’s Arms Control Verification Team and the Institute for National Security Strategy, held at the War Memorial of Korea in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, “Considering the recent situation on the Korean Peninsula, it seems difficult for the South and the North to gain momentum for conventional arms control without progress in denuclearization negotiations.”
It means that even discussions on basic arms control will be effective only if initial denuclearization measures, such as a nuclear freeze and declaration, are realized through North Korean nuclear negotiations.
About this, the CTR program was mentioned as a research project to reduce security threats surrounding the Korean Peninsula.
The CTR program refers to a series of processes to dismantle nuclear and WMD-related materials and systems and block their smuggling in cooperation with other countries. The goal is to reduce threats from allied countries.
Soviet-era technique
Robert Pope, director of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency at the US Department of Defense, introduced the program at the seminar, saying, “After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, concerns arose that nuclear warheads and delivery systems in Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and Belarus would be diverted and sold,” and “That’s when the CTR program was born.”
Pope added, “The nuclear, biological, and chemical materials and delivery systems from these countries were dismantled through the CTR program.”
He continued, “South Korea and the US are also enhancing their response capabilities by conducting training to analyze the characteristics of suspected WMD facilities, practicing decontamination procedures, and conducting joint research on the disposal of chemical, biological, and radiological weapons.”
Former Army Chief of Staff Kim Yo-hwan also supported Pope’s opinion, saying, “We need to review measures to reduce the immediate nuclear and WMD threats from North Korea and devise specific implementation methods and verification procedures like the CTR program.”
The seminar discussed ways to apply past cases from the United States, the Soviet Union, and European countries to the Korean Peninsula under the theme of “Korean Peninsula Security Environment and Reduction of Nuclear and WMD Threats.”
Former Minister of Unification Hong Yong-pyo emphasized, “In the past, Europe led the Vienna Convention (Vienna Convention) and the Conventional Arms Reduction Treaty (CFE) centered on the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe during the Cold War, and the efforts to build trust through these became the driving force for maintaining peace.”
He added, “We need to pool our wisdom on how to create international cooperation in the process of reducing the North Korean nuclear threat.”
Arms verification officials worldwide introduced the process and results of applying the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) and the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START). They compared them with the current situation on the Korean Peninsula.
Seo Cheon-gyu, head of the Arms Control Verification Team, said, “By sharing the experiences of the US, European countries, and related organizations, we were able to explore the direction of reducing threats and military integration on the Korean Peninsula in the future.”
Han Seok-hee, head of the Institute for National Security Strategy, added, “The discussion on regulating the military use of lethal weapons and disarmament and non-proliferation strategies following the Russia-Ukraine War will serve as guidelines that suggest the direction we should take in the rapidly changing international situation.”
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