South Korea's Nuclear Option

The first U.S. opinion survey to examine the views of strategic elites in South Korea about the country’s nuclear option 

The Korea Chair examines the success of U.S. extended deterrence strategies in reassuring South Korea despite growing nuclear threats from North Korea, China, and Russia. The project tracks the strategies, opinions, and theory behind growing calls for nuclearization among the South Korean body politic, and its implications for regional security and the non-proliferation regime. This project resulted in a widely-circulated report by CSIS in April 2024 and an article in The Washington Quarterly (Summer 2024).

This project is made possible with general support from CSIS.

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Why Japan and South Korea Won’t Go Nuclear

CSIS’s Victor Cha and Kristi Govella argue in Foreign Affairs that nuclear concerns about Japan and South Korea are exaggerated—but the United States should remain vigilant on the proliferation risk in East Asia.

Commentary by Victor Cha and Kristi Govella — May 7, 2026

The Impossible State

Breaking Bad: South Korea's Nuclear Option

This bonus episode is from Breaking Bad: South Korea's Nuclear Option Report Rollout Event on April 29, 2024. The new findings of this study “Breaking Bad: South Korea's Nuclear Option” have significant policy implications and the author provides several recommendations for the United States. 

Podcast Episode by Victor Cha and H. Andrew Schwartz — May 2, 2024

The Impossible State Podcast

Breaking Bad: South Korea's Nuclear Option

Is South Korea on the verge of a nuclear breakout? Much of the speculation about South Korea’s nuclear ambitions has been informed by a handful of recent public opinion polls. But a CSIS strategic elite survey shows that a nuclear South Korea is not in the offing.

Report by Victor Cha — April 29, 2024