Local news outlets claim South Korea is working with the United States to supply a nuclear submarine. US President Donald Trump himself said Seoul intends to spend "billions of dollars" on American weapons. The purchase of military submarines would reshape the balance of power in Northeast Asia, triggering a possible regional arms race. Japan has no such weapons systems and China would certainly oppose this evolution. After meeting with South Korean President Moon Jae-in, Trump said Seoul will buy large quantities of US weapons "be it airplanes, missiles or whatever." And he continued: "South Korea will order billions of dollars of this equipment, which makes sense to them and means work for us, reducing the trade deficit with South Korea. Moon, for his part, did not give details on the purchases. , which he nevertheless described as essential for national defense. But reports a senior in his administration revealed that these purchases include "a nuclear submarine and a sophisticated surveillance system." South Korea is heavily dependent on the United States, which maintains over 28000 troops in South Korea. But North Korea's growing nuclear and missile threat is sparking debate, with some even asking Seoul to acquire its own nuclear weapons. . South Korea is currently under the American nuclear umbrella with respect to potential attacks from the North. After the summit with Moon, Trump also announced that he had reached an agreement with his South Korean colleague to lift the 500-ton limit for explosives on South Korean ballistic missiles. This is a limit negotiated in 2012 and on which, in principle, Seoul and Washington had agreed to eliminate it as early as September, after the sixth North Korean nuclear test.