Korea Policy
From the Issue
Korea Policy Vol. 2, Issue 2About Korea Policy
Korea Policy is the premier journal for analysis and commentary on developments affecting the U.S.-South Korea alliance. Bridging scholarly insight and policy relevance, Korea Policy features original research and expert perspectives on strategic, political, economic, and other issues shaping Korea’s role in the world. In this way, KEI aims to inform academic debate, guide policy discussions, and foster a deeper understanding of the important partnership between the United States and South Korea. Contributions come from leading scholars, practitioners, and emerging voices across various fields.
Korea Policy is an open-source academic journal commissioned, edited, and published by the Korea Economic Institute of America in Washington, D.C
Author: Wade Huntley, Yosep Kim
Region: Asia, North America, Asia,North America
Theme: Foreign Relations
Published December 9, 2024
Download PDFOn September 15, 2021, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States announced the formation of AUKUS, a trilateral security partnership intended to support Australia’s acquisition of nuclear-powered submarines. A September 2024 statement marking the third anniversary of the AUKUS arrangement announced that consultations were underway with South Korea, among other countries, to identify possibilities for collaboration under AUKUS Pillar Two. This paper focuses on South Korea’s interests and capacities for collaborating under AUKUS Pillar Two and the opportunities for and limitations facing South Korea in engaging with each of the eight Pillar Two areas, namely undersea capabilities, quantum technologies, artificial intelligence, advanced cyber, hypersonic and counter-hypersonic capabilities, electronic warfare, innovation, and information sharing. In particular, the areas of undersea capabilities and AI have potentially strong mutual benefits for South Korea and the AUKUS partners. While the technological, economic, and military benefits of participating in AUKUS Pillar Two for South Korea could be significant, however, some form of South Korean engagement with AUKUS may impact the country’s conceptions of its core interests, the US-ROK alliance, and other security relationships in the Indo-Pacific region.