The Future for Korean-Japanese Relations: A Conversation with Alexis Dudden

Relations between Japan and South Korea were described during 2019 as being at their worst in the post-war era. History issues, trade issues, and popular sentiment combined to put the bilateral relationship into a downward spiral. Yet, the two democracies face similar challenges in dealing with the rise of China, the stubbornness of diplomacy with North Korea, and a now unpredictable United States. 2020 marks the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II and the 55th anniversary of the normalization of relations between Japan and the Republic of Korea.

Relations between Japan and South Korea were described during 2019 as being at their worst in the post-war era. History issues, trade issues, and popular sentiment combined to put the bilateral relationship into a downward spiral. Yet, the two democracies face similar challenges in dealing with the rise of China, the stubbornness of diplomacy with North Korea, and a now unpredictable United States. 2020 marks the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II and the 55th anniversary of the normalization of relations between Japan and the Republic of Korea.

Please join KEI for a conversation with Alexis Dudden, author of Troubled Apologies Among Japan, Korea, and the United States on future prospects for Korean-Japanese relations and the role of the United States.

Please join KEI for a conversation with Alexis Dudden, author of Troubled Apologies Among Japan, Korea, and the United States on future prospects for Korean-Japanese relations and the role of the United States.

Alexis Dudden received her Ph.D. (with distinction) in History from the University of Chicago in 1998, and her B.A. in East Asian Studies, magna cum laude, from Columbia in 1991. She is currently Professor of History at the University of Connecticut, specializing in modern Japan, modern Korea, and international history. Selected publications include “The Ongoing Disaster,” in The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 71, No. 2 (May 2012); Troubled Apologies Among Japan, Korea, and the United States (Columbia University Press, 2008); and Japan’s Colonization of Korea: Discourse and Power (University of Hawai’i Press, 2005). Her current project, Islands, Empire, Nation: A History of Modern Japan, analyzes Japan’s contemporary territorial disputes through the changing meaning of islands broadly defined.

Alexis Dudden received her Ph.D. (with distinction) in History from the University of Chicago in 1998, and her B.A. in East Asian Studies, magna cum laude, from Columbia in 1991. She is currently Professor of History at the University of Connecticut, specializing in modern Japan, modern Korea, and international history. Selected publications include “The Ongoing Disaster,” in The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 71, No. 2 (May 2012); Troubled Apologies Among Japan, Korea, and the United States (Columbia University Press, 2008); and Japan’s Colonization of Korea: Discourse and Power (University of Hawai’i Press, 2005). Her current project, Islands, Empire, Nation: A History of Modern Japan, analyzes Japan’s contemporary territorial disputes through the changing meaning of islands broadly defined.

Mark Tokola is Vice President of the Korea Economic Institute of America (KEI) in Washington, D.C. He retired as a U.S. Senior Foreign Service Officer with the rank of Minister-Counselor in September 2014. His last posting was as Minister Counselor for Political Affairs at the U.S. Embassy London. Previously, he served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the American Embassies in Seoul, Republic of Korea; Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia; and Reykjavik, Iceland. Among his other postings were two tours at the U.S. Mission to the European Union in Brussels, Minister-Counselor for Economic Affairs at Embassy London, and Economic Counselor at U.S. Embassy The Hague. Mr. Tokola also served as Director of the Iraq Transition Assistance Office (ITAO) in Baghdad from 2007-2008. He received the State Department’s Superior Honor Award for his work on implementing the Dayton Peace Accords while serving as Political Counselor in Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina from 1997-1999.

Mark Tokola is Vice President of the Korea Economic Institute of America (KEI) in Washington, D.C. He retired as a U.S. Senior Foreign Service Officer with the rank of Minister-Counselor in September 2014. His last posting was as Minister Counselor for Political Affairs at the U.S. Embassy London. Previously, he served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the American Embassies in Seoul, Republic of Korea; Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia; and Reykjavik, Iceland. Among his other postings were two tours at the U.S. Mission to the European Union in Brussels, Minister-Counselor for Economic Affairs at Embassy London, and Economic Counselor at U.S. Embassy The Hague. Mr. Tokola also served as Director of the Iraq Transition Assistance Office (ITAO) in Baghdad from 2007-2008. He received the State Department’s Superior Honor Award for his work on implementing the Dayton Peace Accords while serving as Political Counselor in Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina from 1997-1999.