South Korean President Lee Jae-myung disclosed on Wednesday that U.S. President Donald Trump personally proposed during their October summit that South Korea begin domestic production of enriched uranium and enter into a “50–50 partnership” with the United States.

Speaking to foreign journalists at the Blue House guesthouse on the first anniversary of the December 3 martial law declaration, President Lee recounted details of his October 29 meeting with Trump in, saying the U.S. leader directly raised the issue of South Korea’s dependence on foreign nuclear fuel.

“President Trump asked where Korea imports nuclear fuel such as uranium from,” Lee said. “When I answered that about 30 percent currently comes from Russia, he responded that if Korea produces enriched uranium on its own, ‘there will be a lot left over,’ and suggested the two countries ‘become partners on a 50–50 basis.’”

The Blue House later stated that “no further discussions have taken place” on the proposal since the summit.

The remark has drawn significant attention in Seoul, as it could indicate a potential U.S. policy shift toward allowing South Korea greater autonomy in uranium enrichment and reprocessing—long-standing requests from Seoul that have been restricted under the current bilateral nuclear cooperation agreement. It also aligns with South Korea’s argument that expanded nuclear fuel-cycle capabilities would reduce reliance on Russia, strengthen deterrence against North Korea, and serve broader strategic interests against China and Russia.

Analysts say any move toward domestic enrichment or a joint U.S.–South Korea enrichment venture would require revision of the 2015 Korea–U.S. Atomic Energy Agreement and could face opposition from non-proliferation advocates.

The presidential office declined to provide additional details, reiterating only that the matter remains at the stage of an informal proposal raised by President Trump. (ILKHA)