Disagreements about Seoul’s need for nuclear weapons, the feasibility of North Korean denuclearization and the future of the U.S.-ROK alliance bubbled to the surface during South Korea’s first presidential debate on Sunday, as the ruling party’s candidate fought to take the sheen off frontrunner Lee Jae-myung.

While not explicitly endorsing an ROK nuclear weapons program, Kim Moon-soo of the conservative People Power Party emphasized the need for “nuclear balance” on the Korean Peninsula, casting doubt on the possibility of Pyongyang giving up its weapons of mass destruction.

“Our security can only be maintained when we have layered defenses and the