Korea, North

For the first Korean Kontext podcast of 2017, five members of the KEI staff sat down with host Jenna Gibson for a chat about the volitility of 2016 and what…

The last several rounds of UN sanctions against the DPRK have been called the "strongest ever," and the new sanctions passed on November 30 are no different. There are some…

More than 100 million Americans cast their ballots on November 8, and we have a new president-elect. The Trump victory came as a surprise to most, with polls and pundits…

In this episode, which originally aired in 2011, we hear from author Mike Kim, who speaks with Korean Kontext about his experiences living and working with North Korean refugees on…

KEI Communications Director Jenna Gibson, host of the KEI podcast Korean Kontext, recently interviewed Min Jin Lee, author of the critically acclaimed book Pachinko, a novel centered around the struggles of a Korean family living in Japan. The following is a partial transcript of that conversation, which has been edited for space. The rest of…

By Phil Eskeland On January 22, 2018, the Trump Administration announced its decision to impose “safeguard” tariffs (otherwise known as “Section 201”) on imported large residential washing machines and solar panels.  This specific trade action has only been taken by the U.S. one other time since the transformation of the General Agreement on Tariffs and…

By Troy Stangarone After more than a year of China taking steps to pressure South Korea over its decision to deploy the United States’ Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system, it looked as though China was changing its tactics on the issue. While Beijing continued to maintain its opposition to the deployment of THAAD,…

By Juni Kim Last week, two minor South Korean political parties, the People’s Party and the Bareun Party, announced an agreement to merge into a new centrist party. Although the agreement has not been finalized, the merger if completed would be a significant test for the viability of an influential third political party in a…

Please join KEI for a discussion on North Korea’s potential incorporation of AI into its cyber arsenal.