South Korea and the United States will join hands to promote joint research to bring nuclear proliferation under control.

Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT said on Monday that it inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) on cooperation for the Proliferation Resistance Optimization (PRO-X)

The PRO-X has been established in 2020 by the NNSA to provide a technical framework for evaluating and integrating proliferation resistance into nuclear reactor system designs that maintain their safety and peaceful use missions.

The program focuses on mitigating nuclear risks and reducing the production of hazardous nuclear materials.

Under the MoU, Korea will join forces on the project to enhance the proliferation resistance aspect of a pilot model research reactor in collaboration with the U.S.

The partnership will specifically target three key areas: core design for a medium-sized research reactor with a thermal output ranging from 15 to 20 megawatts, nuclear fuel fabrication facilities, and auxiliary facilities.

By Ko Jae-won and Han Yubin

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