Asia

The financial panic of late 2008 and the global economic recession that followed has been the greatest economic shock since World War II. While North Asia was caught up in…

East Asia is an area where real economic activities are closely linked. The brisk trade in goods and services among East Asian countries shows a well-integrated East Asian economy. Most…

A common problem facing students of the economy of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) is the shortage of available statistics. It is extremely challenging to procure DPRK data,…

In the wake of the fall of Lehman Brothers, in the fourth quarter of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009 Korea was faced with its biggest economic challenge since…

This interview originally aired in 2014.  With the retirement by Yi So-yeon, South Korea’s remaining astronaut, many have turned attention to Korea, wondering whether there is a future for its…

In this episode, we spoke with Kevin O'Donnell, who, after decades on a private sector career path, became the first-ever Peace Corps country director for South Korea, followed by a…

As North Korea's largest trading partner and political ally, China is a crucial factor in any potential solution to curb North Korea's weapons programs. President Trump expressed hope earlier this year…

In December 1950, while fighting the advancing Chinese army and bitter Korean winter, Colonel Edward Forney and other American and Korean officers managed to evacuate all troops as well as…

North Korea has continued to multiply its nuclear threats and strongly expressed its resolve to preemptively strike South Korea and the United States with nuclear weapons in the event of a crisis. In 2021, the North Korean regime developed tactical nuclear weapons targeting the Korean Peninsula and surrounding areas. It also documented conditions in which…

This is the second in a two part series looking at Korea's Indo-Pacific Strategy and the Indo-Pacific Strategies of other governments. The first part can be found here. In December of last year, President Yoon Suk Yeol released a key foreign policy document. The Strategy for a Free, Peaceful, and Prosperous Indo-Pacific Region outlines his…

This is the second in a two-part series looking at youth employment in Korea. Part 1 can be found here. Korea’s low youth employment rate reflects the mismatch between the education system and the labor market. The mismatch is driven in part by young people’s pursuit of higher education in hopes of obtaining a “Golden…

Zbigniew Brzezinski described South Korea as a geostrategic pivot on the grand chessboard of Eurasia. When President Yoon stated that South Korea could pursue a nuclear weapons program, he started a game of nuclear chess. South Korea’s possession of nuclear weapons on that chessboard is a strategic plan that requires thinking at least three to…