U.S. commitment to Korean nuclear sub project remains firm despite Iran war, senior Congressman says

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U.S. commitment to Korean nuclear sub project remains firm despite Iran war, senior Congressman says

Published: 01 Apr. 2026, 18:47 Updated: 02 Apr. 2026, 14:45

SEO JI-EUN
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Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Rep. Ami Bera (D-CA) speaks with the Korea JoongAng Daily at the Shilla Hotel in Jung District, central Seoul, on Wednesday. [PARK SANG-MOON]

[INTERVIEW]

Despite growing concern in Seoul that Washington's focus on the war with Iran has caused the Korea-U.S. nuclear submarine project agreed to at last year's summit to stall, a senior U.S. lawmaker said the administration has given Congress an unambiguous pledge that the initiative remains on track.

Rep. Ami Bera, a Democrat of California and a ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on East Asia and the Pacific, in an interview with the Korea JoongAng Daily in Seoul on Wednesday delivered a direct reassurance on one of the alliance's most closely watched — and most anxiously debated — commitments: the nuclear-powered submarine project pledged in the joint fact sheet signed by Korean President Lee Jae Myung and U.S. President Donald Trump in Gyeongju last October.

Bera traveled to Seoul, leading a six-member bipartisan delegation of lawmakers from the U.S. Congressional Study Group on Korea, which he co-chairs.

Bera said Thomas DiNanno, undersecretary of state for arms control and international security, pledged that "the administration was firmly committed" to the submarine project, adding that he raised the question directly in a congressional committee hearing just last week. He plans to convene a follow-up meeting with Republican colleagues to begin working through the technical and legislative details.

On the complex legal and technical hurdles involved — nuclear fuel arrangements, 123 agreements and where the submarines would ultimately be built — Bera pointed to the Aukus submarine pact between Australia, Britain and the United States as the most viable model for moving forward.

"There's a template in that deal that allows us to work on this with Korea," he said. "We were able to work through that with Australia."

Hanwha Philly Shipyard, owned by Korean shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean, in Philadelphia. [NEWS1]

While he acknowledged that unresolved questions might "take a little bit of time," he assured that he doesn't see this as a "partisan issue" as both Democrats and Republicans "would like to work on this with our partners in Korea."

Now on his 12th visit to Seoul in 14 years in Congress, Bera argued that the old framing of the United States as Korea's protector no longer captures the reality on the ground.

"Whereas maybe a decade, two decades ago, it was the United States being a big brother to Korea," said Bera. "Today, they are siblings that are partners."

The shift, he said, is most visible in the industrial domain. American naval shipyards are struggling with aging infrastructure and a shrinking work force — and Korea, he said, is now essential to fixing that.

"Korean shipbuilding is far ahead of where U.S. shipbuilding is, and we need Korean companies to help revitalize American shipbuilding," Bera said, pointing to Hanwha's acquisition of Philly Shipyard as a blueprint for rebuilding American industrial capabilities.

"It should be a positive thing that I think Korean companies should be proud of," he added.

The reassurances on the submarine project arrive amid acute uncertainty over tariffs, which have rattled Korean businesses and raised questions about the durability of planned investments in the United States.

"President Trump sometimes is more transactional," acknowledged Bera, though he pointed to both Congress and the courts as counterweights.

The Supreme Court, he noted, has already ruled that some of the administration's tariffs are unconstitutional — and that Congress must now act.

"I would hope that we can work through these issues in Congress," he said.

He also stressed that the bipartisan consensus within Congress on the alliance itself has not moved.

"Within Congress, nothing has changed about the importance that the United States Congress sees about the alliance on the Korean Peninsula," he said, describing the bipartisan consensus as a "safety net" against the turbulence of the current moment.

Bera pushed back against the Trump administration's recurring characterization of allies as benefiting from American military power without paying their fair share.

"I don’t see Korea as a free rider," he said flatly, highlighting Lee’s commitment to raising Korea's defense spending to 3.5 percent of GDP — well beyond the 2 percent NATO benchmark that many European allies have failed to meet.

Crucially, Bera noted, Korean defense investment translates directly into battlefield-proven hardware, such as the Cheongung-II air defense system that has demonstrated high interception rates against Iranian missiles.

"That's a different conversation than what takes place in Europe," he said, where increased spending often flows toward infrastructure rather than actual military capability.

Bera also addressed the September 2025 detention of approximately 300 Korean workers by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement during a raid at a Hyundai-LG Energy Solution electric vehicle battery plant construction site in Georgia. He framed it not as an isolated incident, but as one of several flashpoints that have collectively "raised the urgency" for action.

"I was embarrassed by that as an American, but it was deeply offensive to the Korean people," he said.

He called on Congress to establish dedicated professional visa quotas for Korean engineers and executives, and suggested that Trump could also act through executive orders to accelerate the process.

Bera met with Lee the day before the interview as part of a bipartisan congressional delegation.

He praised the Korean president for approaching the alliance and relations with Japan with a "very pragmatic" mindset suited to the current geopolitical climate.

Rep. Ami Bera (D-CA) speaks with the Korea JoongAng Daily in Seoul on Wednesday. [PARK SANG-MOON]

"I’ll walk away and go back to the United States with a better understanding of why we need Korea," Bera said. "I can’t speak for President Trump, but for the United States Congress, our commitment to the alliance is as firm as it ever has been."

BY SEO JI-EUN [[email protected]]