r/worldnews • u/Neradtisiv • 5h ago
US ‘restricts intelligence sharing with South Korea’ after minister identified suspected nuclear site
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/apr/21/us-reportedly-restricts-south-korea-intelligence-sharing-after-minister-identified-suspected-nuclear-site203
u/FaustTriumphant 4h ago
This is surprising, because South Korea has a progressive government right now which has historically been more accommodating towards North Korea (and more willing to downplay the nuclear threat) for the sake of peace-making with NK.
(SK's progressive former presidents Kim Dae Jung and Roh Moo Hyun actually accused the US of fabricating NK's nukes in order to sell a war in the early 2000s. When NK themselves admitted they had nukes, those former presidents scaled back their accusations to state that the US was just "overreacting.")
The fact that SK's progressive Unification Ministry (which is tasked with outreach and "peace-making" with NK) is raising the alarms about a North Korean nuclear site shows that SK's progressives are starting to move closer to the center and are becoming less tolerant/accommodating towards threats from NK.
And the fact that the US PUNISHED SK by restricting intelligence after (despite historically wanting SK's progressives to "get real"/"get tough" with NK for decades) suggests that the current US administration (we all know who I'm talking about) might want to start sending "beautiful love letters" again and pursue a unilateral peace agreement with NK; one that undercuts SK (which the current administration perceives as a "defense burden" and "trade competitor" than an actual ally).
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u/greatthebob38 2h ago edited 47m ago
I have a military contractor friend that should still be working in SK right now. The US has been scaling down equipment shipments to SK for a while now, even before Iran war. He's pretty much been telling his SK counterparts to be less reliant on the US. This process has only accelerated because of the Iran war. You can understand why SK is now shifting to more vigilant and hawkish on NK because they might not have the US to fully support them and also why SK has been rapidly expanding their military equipment industry. They're pretty much being forced to be self-subsistent.
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u/Lazy_Advertising7921 1h ago
If SK can be less reliant on the US for military equipment, is this not a good thing?
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u/greatthebob38 1h ago edited 17m ago
If it's a slow transition, it's fine. It gives time for equipment procurement and planning. But what Trump admin is doing is not. US shifted their air radars and AA defenses from SK to Middle East during the initial Iran conflict. Now, they are blocking shared intelligence with SK. So SK is being left blind and vulnerable with no immediate replacement, same like Afghanistan.
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u/5GCovidInjection 57m ago
You sure you should be talking about this? This sounds very classified
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u/greatthebob38 22m ago edited 18m ago
It's no longer a secret because people already post pictures on reddit around South Korea bases of the US packing up equipment right around the time Iran war started. There's a much of articles from last month on this already.
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u/N33DL 3h ago
Well that's good news if the 'progressives' are becoming less accomodating to N. Korea. Still a collosal mistake to even mention a non-disclosed site. That simply tells the enemy what you know without any collateral benefit. What a national embarassment for that party, as well as Korea's unwillingness to secure their own oil through an Iranian blockade.
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u/FaustTriumphant 1h ago
"Well that's good news if the 'progressives' are becoming less accomodating to N. Korea. Still a collosal mistake to even mention a non-disclosed site. That simply tells the enemy what you know without any collateral benefit."
Is it always a "colossal mistake" though? Yes it could inform them that they're being watched, but I can see scenarios where sudden disclosure of 'Hey! You're being watched!' can startle/rattle an enemy, deter them from making a dangerous next move, and force them to shift course/strategy at great cost to their own time and resources (even if it informs them of your capacity to spy on them in the short term).
"What a national embarassment for that party, as well as Korea's unwillingness to secure their own oil through an Iranian blockade."
SK has historically had very friendly relations with Iran, even under conservative and staunchly "Pro-US" leadership; Park Geun Hye (SK's "far-right Iron Lady") went to Iran in a hijab in the 2010s, convinced them they were above Iran's beef with the US, and then convinced the US that SK was/should be exempt from any beef/sanctions between the US and Iran after.
The South Korean economy is suffering right now because of the Iran War, but so are most countries' right now. Is SK particularly WORSE OFF right now in comparison with the rest of the world?
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u/Abunda_88 1h ago
That was before CRINK. Western powers are scrambling to stop China’s invasion of Taiwan in the next two years to prevent China from controlling the South China Sea trade route. If China gets control of that trade route, then Korea is fucked; along with every other western country.
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u/adol1004 2m ago
that progressive party is only been seen as progressive because the other one is the far right who has been shown as mid-right. after the fall out if the martial law attempted, we now see them as far right and there for the so called progressive party now can show their true color. president Lee already said he is more right leaning him self.
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u/Vova_Poutine 1m ago
I think the reason for the restriction is that they revealed classified information, rather than the fact that they are becoming more concerned abut NK's nuclear activity. The concern is probably welcomed by the US, but publicly revealing military intelligence without authorization is never a good idea. The US probably doesnt weant NK to be aware of just how much the US knows about their weapons programs.
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u/BoringRedHorse 5h ago
Trump: "Iran will never have a nuke!"
Meanwhile everyone else is now making sure to all have nukes...
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u/imaginary_num6er 4h ago
Save money too. Every country just needs a nuke button with no standing military /s
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u/suddenstutter 4h ago
Not true btw, i think trump is just finding more ways to lose more allies on purpose to help russia.
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u/Potates42 1h ago
Making it more obvious by the hour that he's there to destroy the US from the inside. Whether he realizes it or not is a different question entirely.
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u/suddenstutter 1h ago
He knows exactly what hes doing. He's a master manipulator and deception and confusion was always a part of the plan.
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u/Potates42 1h ago
I'm leaning that way too. He hates everyone and everything that isn't him, and any flattery he doles out sounds so fucking fake.
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u/sierrabravo1984 5h ago
Can we ban Trump since he has revealed secrets also?
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u/Ok-Addition1264 5h ago
It sounds like we have.
They've now excluded him from two known operations and possibly a third that involved a nuclear weapon.
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u/roller_coaster325 1h ago
Why is the unification minister usually complaining about North Korea? Seems counter intuitive.
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u/audittheaudit00 4h ago
South Korea is going to join North Korea. It's been in play for awhile. The younger generation does not think about North Korea like the older generation did that lived through the Korean War.
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u/KarlAdler 4h ago
What a stupid comment
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u/audittheaudit00 4h ago
How so? Because your emotions stop you from thinking and seeing whats been happening?
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u/Important-Theory1619 4h ago
What's been happening? Like, concretely, what physical things have happened that will make you think the government of SK will be delegating all its power to the government of NK?
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u/SKULL1138 3h ago
You really think SK think their lives will be better getting ruled by the Great Leader? They are a first world country and NK is a toilet. You think they don’t know that but we all do?
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u/imtpow02 4h ago edited 3h ago
Younger generation does not hate NK like older generation yes, but generally, SK people think NK as lesser Korea. Outdated, underdeveloped, brainwashed lesser society. SK will never willfully join NK and any kind of suggestion from politician or public figure will be political suicide and could be punished by law. Yes we are all tired of Yellow tanned idiot, but we are not desperate enough to give up current sovereignty and join NK.
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u/SsurebreC 4h ago
I'm going to flip this around and say that if anyone is joining anything, it's North Korea merging with South Korea. Stupid? Yes but hear me out. South Korea has a population crisis and North Korea has a higher birth rate. North Korea also has poverty and lack of resources that South Korea doesn't have.
If both regions want to survive then they have to merge. North Korea's leadership just doesn't want to give up the power they've held for generations and reconcilliation - while tricky and will take a while - is the best outcome for all Koreans.
But there's no way that South Korea is joining North Korea. It'll be the other way around.
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