President Lee Jae Myung (center) listens to a briefing on the government’s basic plan for developing nuclear-powered submarines during a meeting of the Future Defense Strategy Committee in Jinhae, Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, May 26. (Joint Press Corps via Yonhap) South Korea is moving to expand a submarine program unit under the country’s arms procurement agency, as it accelerates efforts to acquire nuclear-powered submarines.The Interior Ministry has drafted a revision to the organizational decree governing the Defense Acquisition Program Administration and affiliated agencies, according to government officials Friday. Public opinions on the proposal will be accepted through Monday.Under the revision, the Korean Submarine Project Group, a temporary organization under DAPA’s Future Force Program Bureau, will be renamed the Nuclear-Powered Submarine Project Group.Its operating period will also be extended by about two years and eight months, from the end of this year to Aug. 14, 2029.The project group will receive 17 additional personnel and establish two new teams: one responsible for nuclear-powered submarine acquisition and another tasked with nuclear propulsion systems.It currently consists of three teams overseeing contracts, acquisition programs and development related to South Korea’s domestically developed submarines.Despite the planned name change, the group’s responsibilities will not be limited to nuclear-powered submarines.Its mandate covering development planning, localization, performance assessment, procurement and contract management will be expanded from “Korean submarines” to “nuclear-powered submarines and submarines.”The restructuring is also in line with a separate organizational expansion planned by the Defense Ministry.The ministry plans to elevate its division-level Nuclear-Powered Submarine Acquisition Task Force into a director general-level Nuclear-Powered Submarine Policy Planning Group under the vice defense minister.The new group will consist of 21 officials, including personnel dispatched from other government agencies, and will operate until Aug. 14, 2029.The Defense Ministry on Wednesday also issued an advance legislative notice for a special act covering the acquisition, operation, maintenance, dismantlement and safety management of nuclear-powered submarines.The bill includes exemptions from preliminary feasibility studies and special provisions for research, development and testing. It also prohibits the development of nuclear weapons and requires compliance with international nonproliferation norms.The South Korean government unveiled the Jangbogo-N project in May and aims to launch the first vessel in the mid-2030s.