Chapter 178
Chapter 178
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Nuclear Armament (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0.”
The countdown ended, and light burst forth.
Kwaaang!
A new sun rose over the tiny volcanic island of Iwo Jima.
The blinding flash was followed by a shockwave and heat storm that swallowed everything in its path.
The temporary prefab buildings vanished without a trace.
I watched this historic moment unfold on TV.
“Your Excellency! Congratulations.”
“Yeah. Now we’re a nuclear power too.”
On January 10, 1953, Korea became the third nuclear-armed nation on Earth.
The remaining tasks were to develop delivery systems like ICBMs and SLBMs for nuclear weapons, along with hydrogen bombs to boost explosive yield.
I visited the Energy Research Institute for World Peace.
“My underlings, I’m proud of you.”
I personally encouraged the scientists who had led the nuclear weapons development and handed out gold bonuses.
With this, we no longer had to watch the US or Soviets’ every move.
Once we achieved mutual assured destruction with them soon, we’d face no more security threats.
‘I wonder what Mao Zedong’s face looks like right now.’
I officially announced our nuclear armament to the people.
“Our Korea has become a nuclear power with its own nuclear strike force. No one can threaten the Empire’s security front lines anymore. From now on, you can sleep soundly with both legs stretched out. If any enemy dares threaten the Empire, we will punish them with the Juche’s nuclear warheads. This I, Lee Seong-jun, guarantee.”
And with that, another trophy was added to Lee Seong-jun’s list of achievements.
UN Security Council permanent member + nuclear power + world’s third-ranked great power.
As soon as we joined the list of nuclear powers, strange currents stirred in the international community.
India, fresh from ending its civil war, and a few other countries reached out, proposing to gather the “non-aligned nations” and form a Third World bloc.
“America and the Soviets both disgust us. Let Korea be the third option for nations like ours. Korea as the leader of the Third World—how about it? If Korea raises the flag, we’ll stand beneath it.”
They wanted us to play the same role as the Soviets?
Nope.
I passed on that offer.
We were already straining to keep up with the Soviets—why burden ourselves with extra baggage?
Forming an official bloc could wait until we caught up to them.
Power naturally attracts followers.
Bragging prematurely would only draw America’s scrutiny.
The Soviets were already pulling aggro as the communist leaders—why bother with such nonsense?
I rejected any plans for a Third World outright.
This little episode proved that nuclear weapons had elevated Korea’s power and status to an entirely new level.
Even the arrogant Mao Zedong adopted a humble attitude in the face of Korea’s nuclear arsenal.
The sporadic anti-Korea propaganda vanished completely.
“Korea, as the eldest brother of East Asia, needs to act in a manner befitting its position.”
Instead, they started making weak noises and watching our reactions.
Nuclear weapons really do make people humble.
Washington and Moscow’s attitudes toward us improved dramatically too.
“Prime Minister Lee Seong-jun, we’d like your opinion on this matter, Your Excellency.”
People who used to just ask for mediation or favors now sought my input in advance.
It truly felt like we were nearing the status of an equal player among them.
Not long after grasping the nuclear bomb, discreet inquiries came from several countries.
First up: Israel.
“You’re really giving us the nuclear warheads, right? You have to keep your promise.”
I’d keep my promise.
I repeatedly reassured Tel Aviv.
Next was Britain.
“Any chance you’d share nuclear technology with us?”
Of course—absolutely.
Knowing from intelligence that Britain would soon complete its own nuclear program anyway, I was willing to offer that much help.
“We’ll cooperate.”
The reason for favoring Britain was simple.
I planned to secure Australian uranium supplies under the pretext of technical collaboration.
Finally, France.
“Could Korea support our nuclear development, by any chance?”
In 1945, I wouldn’t have even spoken to de Gaulle.
But France, having cut loose Algeria and Indochina? That changed things.
Channeling a used car salesman, I asked:
“So, how much are you thinking of offering?”
France was going to get nukes anyway.
I proposed sharing in exchange for French capital.
We needed to recoup our investment costs too.
France’s payment?
They’d probably embezzle Marshall Plan funds or something.
France gladly accepted my counteroffer.
“We’ll give you whatever you ask!”
As we moved forward with nuclear tech sharing, America and the Soviets expressed concerns.
“Aren’t you handing nukes out to every dog and cat?”
No, not at all.
I was only helping those already on the path.
“We’re only sharing with countries already developing them. We have no intention of supporting any more nuclear programs.”
“In that case, Your Excellency, please support our non-proliferation treaty push in Washington. Moscow has agreed too.”
The nuclear ladder-pull that wouldn’t appear until 1968 was coming early?
Makes sense—they must be scared seeing me reach out everywhere.
“Very well.”
I agreed to join the US-Soviet non-proliferation effort.
Truth be told, the warheads I promised to share weren’t that significant on their own.
Without strategic bombers, missiles, or battleships as delivery platforms, nukes were barely better than nothing.
Even we had improvised delivery platforms ready for our nukes.
In Korea’s case, the platform was battleships.
We’d originally planned nuclear torpedoes, but efficiency favored this route, so we pivoted.
Shortly after agreeing to the non-proliferation treaty, word came that talks were progressing at the UN General Assembly.
America and the Soviets were in a real hurry.
“Nuclear monopoly is nice while it lasts.”
But not me.
I wasn’t aiming for hegemony like them—I was a challenger gunning for a multipolar world from below.
The more nuclear powers emerged to dilute their dominance, the better for me.
Of course, too many would be a problem, so ideally just the canonical five from my timeline.
I didn’t want nuclear states proliferating willy-nilly either.
“Your Excellency, the next nuclear test—still at Iwo Jima?”
“That’s the best spot.”
It was isolated from the Korean mainland with no fallout risk. Nowhere was more ideal.
“Japan’s raising concerns about fallout, so I thought I’d mention it.”
Civilians knew radiation fallout’s dangers from the Italian War aftermath.
Birth defects surged around blast sites, and survivors suffered rare diseases.
No wonder people foamed at the mouth over radioactive fallout.
‘Iwo Jima’s out.’
We needed to keep Japanese goodwill to sell them goods.
No reason to test there just to piss off Japan.
Reviewing alternatives, I had an idea.
No need to do it domestically.
Since we were cooperating with Britain anyway, why not borrow Commonwealth muscle?
“You want to borrow one of our islands?”
“We’ll pay handsomely.”
“More than that—we’d like to observe.”
“Then that’s what we’ll do.”
The British readily offered a nuclear test site.
With the location secured, we scheduled the second test.
Nuclear testing wasn’t a one-and-done deal.
We’d need to keep going until hydrogen bombs were perfected.
Even conservatively, dozens of tests were required for a usable H-bomb.
And if America or the Soviets developed stronger nukes, we’d have to miniaturize warheads to keep pace up to a point.
Money pits, sure—but essential to avoid falling hopelessly behind.
Mutual assured destruction demanded massive investment in that regard.
Of course, I had no intention of pursuing full MAD like them.
Stockpiling tens of thousands of warheads was pure idiocy—shoveling money into a fire.
Why stockpile nukes that’d be obsolete in 20 years?
Just enough to hit enemy megacities.
200-300 warheads would suffice, in my view.
That matched original China and Britain’s arsenals.
Even that level would cost around 10 trillion won annually to maintain, by original South Korean standards.
Go full America/Soviet with tens of thousands?
You’d need hundreds of billions in defense spending.
When development funds were already tight? Straight-up North Korea territory.
“Raw materials supply chain solid?”
“From the second batch, we’ve contracted Australian ore imports—no issues.”
Korea had major uranium mines, but Australia’s were far more cost-effective.
We used domestic uranium only until armament, then switched to bulk imports from ally Australia.
We held off on Australian ore initially out of fear America would sabotage our program.
No such worries now.
America knew they couldn’t undo nukes already in hand.
Look at North Korea.
For once, I sank deep into my chair, savoring the comfort.
Holding nuclear weapons.
It was one hell of a thrill.