Talk of South Korea acquiring nuclear weapons has dominated defense discussions in Seoul in recent years amid concerns about North Korea’s rapid military development, but the ongoing presidential election has renewed debate about a different kind of nuclear asset — submarines.

As detailed in a forthcoming report from the Sejong Institute, the ROK government has considered acquiring indigenous nuclear submarines since at least the 1990s, making moves to acquire the necessary underlying technologies and developing research expertise. This has reflected a desire to deter the DPRK’s more powerful conventional forces, but also perhaps the simple fact