South Korea, Japan and the US are expected to form a "nuclear fuel alliance" to counter China and Russia. South Korean media: Trump's pressure, using the "nuclear fuel alliance" to subvert

The concentrated uranium market is controlled by Russia and China, which is a risk factor for South Korea and the US... It should upgrade the alliance relationship through nuclear power uranium enrichment and global supply alliance

Trump only needs the fact that the United States is a large trade deficit country to make leaders of other countries helpless, regardless of whether they are allies or not, Trump is aggressive. In the so-called "White House office survival battle", the struggle of the heads of state of Ukraine, South Africa, Canada, and the EU clearly shows the cold reality of international politics. With little time left before the November 2022 mid-term elections, Trump will focus more on maximizing the national interests of the United States.

What is worth noting in this South Korea-US summit meeting is the possibility of combining the US's "modernization of the South Korea-US alliance" with South Korea's "future-oriented comprehensive strategic alliance". If the South Korea-US alliance, which has relied on American security guarantees for the past 70 years, can be transformed into a more mutually beneficial "cutting-edge science and technology alliance" for the next 70 years, this meeting will become a historic summit meeting. From this perspective, during the follow-up negotiations of the summit meeting, special attention should be paid to the "South Korea-US joint promotion of nuclear fuel uranium enrichment production and global supply plan." If South Korea and the US establish a nuclear power uranium enrichment and supply consortium, it not only meets the needs of both countries, but also opens up an excellent opportunity to lead a new order for the stability of the global nuclear fuel market.

Currently, Russia supplies about 44% of the nuclear fuel (enriched uranium) required by about 440 nuclear power plants around the world, and China accounts for 15%. As long as these two countries have the intention, more than half of the global nuclear reactors may face the crisis of shutdown. The enriched uranium used by the 94 nuclear power plants currently operating in the United States accounts for about 23% from Russia. And South Korea imports 32% of its enriched uranium from Russia, and 5% from China. This exposes the weaknesses of South Korea and the US in their high dependence on Russia and China. After the Ukraine war, Russia's market share in the global market has declined slightly, but China's market share has risen sharply. It is expected that Russia and China will continue to control the enriched uranium market. Although South Korea has reserves of 2-3 years of nuclear fuel, a serious global crisis can erupt at any time.

Last May, Trump announced the "era of nuclear energy" and signed an executive order, planning to quadruple the power generation capacity of nuclear power plants by 2050. Analysts believe that the background is the surge in demand for artificial intelligence and the rapid popularization of small modular reactors (SMRs). The United States operates 94 nuclear power plants, most of which rely on imported enriched uranium or rely on transnational companies within the United States. Last May, the US Congress passed a bill banning the import of Russian enriched uranium. Finding an alternative supply solution for the US has become an urgent task. After the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident in Japan, the price of enriched uranium once plummeted, but in the past five years, it has tripled. This is related to the drastic changes in the supply and demand environment.

As the fifth largest nuclear power country in the world, South Korea not only completely relies on imported nuclear materials, but more than 37% of the materials depend on Russia and China, whose long-term supply reliability is questionable, which is a risk factor for energy security. Although low-enriched uranium fuel rods account for 5%, they are not directly related to the production of nuclear weapons, but due to the sensitivity of uranium enrichment technology, the US has always blocked South Korea from producing it independently. The revised "South Korea-US Atomic Energy Agreement" in 2015 allows uranium enrichment of up to 20% in principle, but due to the restrictive clause that must reach an agreement through the South Korea-US Atomic Energy Senior Committee in advance, there has been no progress in the past 10 years. This is because the US Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act (passed in 1978) stipulates that no technology for military purposes can be transferred, so South Korea has not crossed this threshold. It is regrettable that the fifth largest nuclear power country in the world has suffered such misunderstandings and humiliations. Clearly defining the "South Korea-US nuclear fuel uranium enrichment and global supply alliance" as a purely industrial project based on cutting-edge science will effectively eliminate the concerns and misunderstandings of the US nuclear non-proliferation group.

We hope that this South Korea-US summit meeting will serve as an opportunity for the revision of the South Korea-US nuclear energy agreement and the active initiatives of the senior nuclear energy committee to be concretized. From this level, the news that Centrus, the only US company with uranium enrichment facilities, has signed a long-term procurement contract for advanced fourth-generation uranium enrichment with the Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Corporation, and is exploring joint production cooperation plans, is encouraging. To achieve more proactive progress than joint production or ensuring the global supply chain, it is necessary for South Korean enterprises with world-class technical potential to boldly participate. This can be called a "nuclear fuel alliance." If South Korea is responsible for manufacturing and marketing, Japan is responsible for materials, components, equipment and finance, and the US provides source technology, the three countries will work together in the form of a trilateral consortium, which will help to disrupt the world market structure dominated by Russia and China.

Source: Chosun Ilbo

Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1841503594305548/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author.