Asia

They Did What?! On the morning of May 25, after giving the U.S. government one hour’s notice, North Korea detonated a nuclear device underground at the same northeast site of…

It seems that Kim Jong-il’s health, perhaps North Korea’s most closely guarded secret, is on everyone’s minds these days. Rumors of Kim’s ailments are growing in their level of seriousness,…

As it focused on rapid industrialization and accelerated economic growth, Korea had little leisure to worry about environmentally sustainable growth, with severe consequences: Korea is one of the top ten…

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s choice of Asia as the destination for her inaugural tour gave recognition to the significance of U.S. alliances and strategic interests in the region. From…

2018 has been an incredibly eventful year for both the Koreas and the U.S.-Korea relationship: from North Korea’s participation in the Winter Olympics at the start of the year to…

Interest in the Korean peninsula is generally very narrow in the United States – it tends to be focused on North Korea and security issues, particularly the country's ballistic and…

Last Friday, on November 30, 2018, President George H.W. Bush passed away. In the days that followed, there were many discussions in the foreign policy community about the late president's…

What does a unified Korea look like? Beyond the question of whether the government of this new country will be a unitary or federal one, how will the people –…

Two years into his tenure, President Yoon Suk Yeol seems proud of his efforts to realize his foreign policy vision. “The global pivotal state diplomacy that we have put into practice since the launch of this government has become the government's signature policy,” he told chiefs of missions during a banquet, according to the Yonhap…

The outcome of South Korea’s parliamentary elections seems undeniable. The opposition Democratic Party (DP) won a convincing victory and together with its progressive allies will hold a commanding 192-seat majority in the 300 seat National Assembly. Former DP presidential candidate and current party leader Lee Jae-myung is cemented, for now, as the likely presidential standard bearer when…

Innovation has played a vital role in Korea’s rapid economic development. Initially led by the introduction of new technology from abroad, Korea has achieved sustained progress toward the global innovation frontier. Korea’s innovation inputs in terms of human capital and research spending are among the highest in the world. It also has the highest share…

Russia’s February 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine has been one of the defining geopolitical moments of the modern era—and while not as headline grabbing as its ramifications for Europe and the so-called ‘BRICS’ (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) agenda, its impact on the Korean Peninsula has been profound. Vladimir Putin’s war has significantly impacted…