Asia

Seoul has gradually adopted a more outspoken position regarding the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and framed it in increasingly expansive terms—as a regional and global…

The development of the concept of the Indo-Pacific strategy, since its adoption by the United States in 2017, has primarily been driven by the emergence of China as an object…

While the use of the term “Indo-Pacific” is relatively new, debates about its use echo longstanding arguments about how the region should be defined: who is in, who is out,…

This spring, Han Kang became the first Korean author to win the prestigious Man Booker International Prize for her novel, "The Vegetarian." And, for the first time in the prize's…

North Korea recently experienced one of the worst natural disasters in its history, as flood waters swept through towns in the northeast part of the country. Up to 600,000 people…

Middlebury College, famous for its immersive language programs, added Korean as its 11th language in 2015. Now, after two summers, the School of Korean is helping students from a variety…

With the goal of supporting the next generation of scholars interested in Korea and Northeast Asia, the U.S.-Korea Next Gen Scholars Program brings together young professionals from various backgrounds to…

Taiwan is one of the most sensitive issues concerning China, so it was with some surprise to see it raised at the U.S.-ROK summit held in May. Underscoring shared support for the rules-based international order, the joint statement released after the summit said: “President Biden and President Moon emphasize the importance of preserving peace and…

What Happened On June 7, the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission announced it discovered 16 cases of suspicious land transactions involving 12 lawmakers from the ruling Democratic Party (DP) – potentially suggesting their involvement in a speculation scheme. Although the commission said it was unable to release the DP lawmakers’ names, the DP leadership decided to release their names…

Outside observers sometimes interpret the adoption of South Korean pop culture trends by North Korea’s state-sanctioned outlets as symbols of the regime buckling under the internal demand for change. The implicit hope is that cultural imitation of South Korea will lead to Pyongyang’s liberalization in other areas, particularly the economy and the political structure. People…

What Happened Internet company Naver’s labor union is publicly criticizing the company’s management after one of its employees took his own life due to excessive workloads and workplace harassment. Other companies have also struggled to create a stable and safe workplace environment, evident in recent strikes protesting overwork in other industries. Gig workers, or “irregular workers,” have received even fewer protections…