2016 13th Colloquium on “ROK’s Nuclear Option and Inter-Korean Dialogue amid DPRK’s Increasing Nuclear Capability”
The 13th Colloquium was held on Tuesday, April 19, 2016 at the Sejong Institute on the subject of “ROK’s Nuclear Option and Inter-Korean Dialogue amid DPRK’s Increasing Nuclear Capability.” For technical inputs from the scientific community, we invited Dr. Kune Yull Suh, professor of nuclear energy system engineering at Seoul National University, and Dr. Choongeun Lee from the Science and Technology Policy Institute in South Korea for their comments and insights. Dr. Seong-chang Cheong, our senior research fellow and director of Department of Unification Strategy Studies led the discussion with his presentation on the topic during which he talked about (a) the growing DPRK’s nuclear capability, (b) the needs and capability of ROK’s nuclear options, (c) the dual-track approach of ROK-led management of DPRK nuclear issue and inter-Korean dialogue, and (d) the logic of persuasion for the international society. Due to the sensitivity concerning the topic, Dr. Cheong argued that both the government and the academic community should approach the issue with great care.
Following the presentation by Dr. Seong-chang Cheong, the participants including Chairman Joon-woo Park, President Chang Soo Jin and other research fellows at the institute engaged in an active discussion on the viability and political ramifications of nuclear options for South Korea.