South Korea, US set for new collaboration to deter North's nuclear threat

WASHINGTON - The US on Wednesday pledged to give South Korea more insight into its nuclear planning over any conflict with North Korea amid anxiety over Pyongyang's growing arsenal of missiles and bombs.

The announcement, which included a renewed pledge by Seoul not to pursue a nuclear weapons program of its own, came as US President Joe Biden and South Korean leader Yoon Suk Yeol held White House talks on Wednesday on issues including North Korea, chips and trade and the Ukraine war.

At a joint news conference, Yoon announced that he and Biden had agreed on steps to strengthen South Korea's defenses in response to the threat posed by North Korea.

"Our two countries have agreed to immediate bilateral presidential consultations in the event of North Korea's nuclear attack and promised to respond swiftly, overwhelmingly and decisively using the full force of the alliance, including the United States nuclear weapons," Yoon said.

Biden again reiterated the US offer to North Korea to hold diplomatic negotiations over its nuclear and missile programs, an offer that has been ignored by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

After the talks and news conference, the two leaders were to attend a glittering state dinner catered by a US chef whose mother emigrated from Korea.

Biden and Yoon were using the first formal state visit by a South Korean leader in more than a decade to send a warning to Pyongyang.

North Korea's rapidly advancing weapons programs - including ballistic missiles that can reach U.S. cities - has raised questions about whether the US would really use its nuclear weapons to defend South Korea under what it calls "extended deterrence."

Opinion polls in South Korea show a majority of the public wants Seoul to acquire its own nuclear bombs, a step Washington opposes.

The summit also produced agreements on issues including cyber security, electric vehicles and batteries, quantum technology, foreign assistance and economic investment.

Under a new "Washington Declaration," the US will give South Korea detailed insights into, and a voice in, US contingency planning to deter and respond to any nuclear incident in the region through a US-ROK Nuclear Consultative Group, US officials said.

Washington will deploy imposing military technology, including a ballistic-missile submarine, to South Korea in a show of force, senior .S administration officials told reporters in a briefing call. It will be the first such submarine visit since the 1980s, they said.

The officials stressed that no US nuclear weapons would be returned to the peninsula, and South Korea would continue not to have control over the US nuclear arsenal. -- Reuters