Korea, South

For understandable reasons, the international community has been focused on North Korea's nuclear program, concerned that Pyongyang could have a weapon capable of such massive destruction. But should they also…

Human rights in North Korea remains a divisive issue between the international community and North Korea. In 2013, the United Nations Human Rights Council established Commission of Inquiry on Human…

  When Marja Vongerichten was 19, she met her birth mother for the first time since being adopted at age three. The first thing they bonded over, Marja says, was…

Born in Brooklyn, Chef Edward Lee always loved cooking. And after graduating from college with an English literature degree, he returned to that love and became an award-winning chef. Not…

By Troy Stangarone With the global economy slowing and Korean merchandise exports and imports down in 2015 we recently looked at how U.S.-Korea trade compared to Korean trade in general and U.S. trade more broadly. However, Korea has one of the world’s most expansive network of free trade agreements. In this post we explore how…

By Jenna Gibson Before getting into the list, please keep a few things in mind. First, the term “North Korean defectors” is a controversial one. In Korean, various terms have been used to refer to people who left North Korea, reflecting both politics and the shifting demographics of those fleeing. In 2005, South Korea’s Ministry…

By Junil Kim Known equally for inducing both sighs and groans from hopeful and jaded people worldwide, Valentine’s Day is just around the corner on February 14th. If the mere thought of Valentine’s Day is more headache-inducing than swoon-worthy, you could consider the wider array of South Korea’s romantically themed holidays. It doesn’t take an…

By Troy Stangarone The United States and Korea recently released year-end merchandise trade data. With the global economy slowing as China’s economy cools, many emerging markets saw growth slow or stall, while significant drops in oil prices proved more of a drag on economic growth than expected. As a result, both the United States and…

Please join KEI and KIEP for a discussion about the first 10 years of KORUS and the future of the U.S.-Korea economic relationship.