Korea, North

When Kim Jong-il died in 2011, the world held its breath as North Korea entered uncharted waters. No other communist dictatorship in the last century – for that matter no…

The North Korean economy is changing – we know this because of widely reported growth of private markets since the famine of 1990s. But black markets and illicit activities are…

North Korea’s ambassador to the United Nations Kim Song demanded that the United States release a North Korean vessel that is currently held by authorities in American Samoa, warning that…

It’s been nearly one year since the Singapore Summit between President Trump and Kim Jong-un and the two countries are at an impasse. North Korea signals no intention of giving…

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.