Asia

This paper examines policies in the renewables sector across various countries and where political tensions could generate suboptimal outcomes for the sector’s development. In its analysis of supply- and demand-side…

With North Korea becoming increasingly politically isolated, there are few channels through which the international community can remain engaged. Despite the distaste most have for Pyongyang politics, more than 24…

This paper compares Sino–South Korean management of bilateral economic and political tensions; it argues that China’s WTO entry has provided an external institutional framework for managing disputes on the economic…

On 19 December 2003, the leader of Libya, Col. Muammar El-Qaddafi, shocked the world by abruptly stating that his country was renouncing its attempts to develop weapons of mass destruction…

Despite being industrial powerhouses, Korea and Japan are both resource-poor nations with limited domestic sources of energy. Powering their economies required both to develop supply chains for fossil fuels, nuclear…

In 2023, KEI has set out on its “Rethinking Korea initiative,” which explores the evolution of U.S.-Korea relations, Korea’s place in the world, and rapid changes in Korean society itself.…

In 2023, KEI has set out on its “Rethinking Korea initiative,” which explores the evolution of U.S.-Korea relations, Korea’s place in the world, and rapid changes in Korean society itself.…

In 2023, KEI has set out on its “Rethinking Korea initiative,” which explores the evolution of U.S.-Korea relations, Korea’s place in the world, and rapid changes in Korean society itself.…

With the help of social media and internationally popular Korean shows, global interest in Korean skincare and makeup products (collectively referred to as K-beauty) has increased exponentially in the past decade. Today, K-beauty products are readily available to American customers at chain stores like CVS and Sephora. This market transition was not coincidental: it was strongly supported…

On July 27, the Korea Central News Agency (KCNA) announced that “the top leaders of the north and the south agreed to make a big stride in recovering the mutual trust and promoting reconciliation by restoring the cutoff inter-Korean communication liaison lines through the recent several exchanges of personal letters.”  The hotline was restored at…

The March death of Byun Hee-soo, a former soldier, underscores the challenges faced by LGBT Koreans. She had been forced out of the military because she underwent gender reassignment surgery. Legal protections for LGBT people are weak in South Korea, and they face significant social and political obstacles. Although the Biden administration has signaled its…

What Happened Last September, Google sought to force all apps downloaded from Google Play Store to use its billing system. Mounting criticism from app developers prompted Google to lower its commission rate for its billing system from 30% to 15% for app developers whose annual sales amount to less than USD 1 million. Recently, Democratic Party (DP) lawmakers pushed ahead with…