[New York = E-Daily Reporter Kim Sang-yoon ] At the South Korea-U.S. summit—which took place following progress in investment talks with the U.S.—the issue President Lee Jae-myung focused on the longest was the transfer of wartime operational control. U.S. President Donald Trump placed emphasis on cooperation in shipbuilding. South Korea is rushing to complete preparations to take the lead in defending the Korean Peninsula, while President Trump expressed interest in shipbuilding cooperation linked to the construction of U.S. warships. The two leaders, who met in New York on the 22nd (local time), confirmed their respective interests, but no concrete progress was made on specific agreements regarding the timing of the OPCON transfer or the construction of warships.

A high-ranking Blue House official stated, “The issue on which we spent a considerable amount of time discussing was OPCON.” The South Korean side explained in detail to President Trump their desire to finalize the transfer as soon as possible while meeting the necessary conditions. According to this official, President Trump gained a much better understanding of the OPCON issue after hearing the explanation. This marked the first time the two leaders had discussed the OPCON issue, and both sides also mentioned plans for high-level consultations to continue the discussion.
President Lee’s emphasis on an “expeditious transfer” is contingent on the fulfillment of certain conditions. South Korea and the U.S. have agreed not to set a specific year for the transfer but to proceed based on an assessment of the ROK military’s capabilities to lead combined defense operations. The joint statement issued by the two leaders last November also included cooperation on the OPCON transfer and the strengthening of South Korea’s military capabilities. The South Korean and U.S. defense ministers agreed to proceed this year with a verification of the Future Combined Forces Command’s full operational capability. Although President Lee personally requested President Trump to speed up the process during this meeting, the two sides did not discuss a new transfer schedule separately.
The South Korean side also reaffirmed its commitment to increasing defense spending and assuming greater responsibility for the defense of the Korean Peninsula. In line with this, it requested that discussions on nuclear-powered submarines be brought forward. A senior Blue House official stated that progress on the nuclear energy agreement and discussions regarding nuclear submarines had stalled due to various external factors, but emphasized the need to revisit these stagnant issues now that the U.S.-South Korea investment talks have been resolved. National Security Advisor Wi Seong-rak announced that, based on the joint briefing document issued last November, the two leaders agreed to deepen cooperation and hold follow-up consultations in the areas of nuclear submarine fuel, enrichment and reprocessing, shipbuilding cooperation, and the transfer of operational control.
Meanwhile, President Trump’s focus shifted to shipbuilding. Last June, he asked President Lee whether South Korea could quickly build 10 U.S. warships, and he again showed considerable interest in shipbuilding cooperation during this meeting. However, the U.S. has not placed an order for 10 ships, nor has the volume or location of construction been determined during these talks.
There are legal and production capacity hurdles to translating President Trump’s interest into actual warships. U.S. law generally restricts the overseas construction of U.S. Navy vessels. Utilizing South Korean shipyards requires exceptional procedures, such as a determination of national security necessity and notification to Congress. If U.S. shipyards are used, there is the challenge of securing sufficient facilities and manpower.
The two missile tracking ships being built by Hanwha’s Philly Shipyard in the U.S. are a separate project. Announced last July by the U.S. Missile Defense Agency as a project worth approximately $2 billion, these ships are designed to observe missile interception tests and collect data. The first ship is scheduled for delivery in 2030. South Korea and the U.S. agreed to hold follow-up consultations in Washington as soon as possible regarding the transfer of operational control, nuclear submarine fuel, enrichment, and reprocessing, as well as shipbuilding cooperation.
Meanwhile, the talks that day began with a discussion of golf and ended with one as well. According to a senior Blue House official, President Trump shook hands with President Lee, asked after First Lady Kim Hye-kyung’s well-being, and then said, “We really ought to play a round of golf sometime.” As the meeting concluded, President Lee mentioned the possibility of the Group of 20 (G20) summit being held in Miami this coming December and expressed his hope that they could play golf then. The official said, “I can’t say they promised to play golf, but the topic of golf came up at the very beginning and at the very end.”