United States of America

Adhering to the action-for-action framework of the February 13, 2007 agreement, North Korea and the United States traded symbolic actions last week that grabbed the headlines—explosive video footage of North…

For Korea watchers—and particularly for those of us who worked closely on events associated with President Lee’s visit to Washington—April was a very rewarding month. After multiple protocol meetings, site…

KEI recently completed its seventeenth annual Ambassadors’ Dialogue program. The tour was the third featuring Lee Tae-sik, the Republic of Korea’s Ambassador to the United States, and Alexander Vershbow, United…

On September 20, the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) released its report on the KORUS FTA. The ITC study is a required analysis under Trade Promotion Authority that explores the…

This is the fifth in a 10 part series looking at how the issues identified in KEI’s annual “10 Issues to Watch for on the Korean Peninsula” series developed in 2021. The original “10 Issues” piece can be found here. The first year of the Biden administration has seen the U.S. return to multilateral frameworks…

This is the second in a 10 part series looking at how the issues identified in KEI’s annual “10 Issues to Watch for on the Korean Peninsula” series developed in 2021. The original “10 Issues” piece can be found here. Although it is commonly understood that the Biden Administration carried out a policy review regarding…

What Happened The U.S. government asked semiconductor manufacturers to voluntarily share their client list, inventory status, and other confidential information. This includes South Korean firms like Samsung and SK Hynix. South Korea is concerned that the request would reveal these firms’ trade secrets to rivals. Implications: South Korea approaches commercial engagement with trade partners with the assumption that their policymakers will look at…

Following its success in containing the early waves of the COVID-19 pandemic, South Korea hoped to be recognized as a global health leader. But a recent survey conducted by KEI and YouGov suggests that fewer Americans see South Korea as an ideal partner in global health challenges than they did in 2020 (52% in 2020 vs. 43…

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.