South Korea and the United States have reportedly reached an understanding to remove South Korea from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)‘s “sensitive countries and other designated countries list” (SCL).
Sources revealed on March 21 that South Korea, as a long-time ally, argued for its removal to ensure continued cooperation in nuclear energy and scientific fields. The U.S. agreed with this stance, and internal procedures are now underway to officially exclude South Korea from the list, though it remains unclear whether this will be finalized before the April 15 effective date.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy reported that Minister Ahn Duk-geun raised concerns about South Korea’s inclusion on the sensitive countries list during his first meeting with U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright, and that both sides agreed to cooperate and swiftly resolve the issue through established procedures.
While early speculation suggested that South Korea’s inclusion was linked to domestic discussions on nuclear armament, U.S. officials cited security breaches at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) and other facilities as the reason. With both nations agreeing that South Korea should not be on the list, the issue seems to be moving toward resolution. South Korea was added to the list in January under the Biden administration.
The DOE confirmed that there are no new restrictions on scientific and technological cooperation with South Korea and expressed eagerness to enhance mutual benefits through continued collaboration.
Minister Ahn and Secretary Wright also agreed to strengthen energy cooperation in areas including LNG, power grids, hydrogen, and nuclear energy, particularly small modular reactors (SMRs). They decided to regularize energy policy dialogues and hold joint public-private energy forums.
Ahn said, “This visit confirmed both countries' commitment to resolving the sensitive country issue and offered an opportunity to strengthen Korea-U.S. energy cooperation.” He added, “Through close consultations on energy policies emphasized during the Trump administration, we aim to identify opportunities for joint projects and investment expansion to lead the global energy market together.”
