The U.S. government’s move to put South Korea -- a non-nuclear ally--in the same company as countries like China or North Korea has unsettled politicians in Seoul

South Korea's acting president urged ministries on Monday to work with the U.S. to avoid any negative impact on science, technology and energy cooperation after the U.S. Department of Energy designated South Korea a 'sensitive' country.

The US added South Korea to a list of so-called sensitive countries for energy cooperation in January after a security breach came to light, according to South Korea’s Foreign Ministry.