The Lee Jae Myung Administration’s Regional Diplomacy with China and Japan

Join us for a special panel discussion, “The Lee Jae Myung Administration’s Regional Diplomacy with China and Japan” on Monday, October 20, 2025.

South Korea’s Lee Jae Myung administration has embraced what it calls “national interest–driven pragmatic diplomacy.” While this approach embraces a strong U.S.–Korea alliance, it also raises key questions about Seoul’s evolving relationships with its regional neighbors, China and Japan.

Will the Lee government return to “strategic ambiguity” as a way to mend ties with the Xi Jinping government? What is the administration’s China policy, and how is it viewed from Beijing?

Meanwhile, South Korea–Japan relations have continued to improve, but the election of Sanae Takaichi raises some doubts about whether this momentum will be sustained.

Ms. Shihoko Goto, Vice President of Programs and Director of the Asia Program, Foreign Policy Research Institute, and Dr. Sungmin Cho, Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, Sungkyunkwan University, will tackle these and other questions on an exclusive panel moderated by Dr. Ellen Kim, KEI’s Director of Academic Affairs.

When: Monday, October 20, 2025, from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. ET

Where: KEI Event Space, 1800 K Street NW, 3F, Washington, D.C. 20006

In-person attendance is highly encouraged. Livestream available on the KEI YouTube channel.

The panelists’ research will appear in the Fall/Winter 2025 issue of Korea Policy, KEI’s flagship journal, to be published in December.