Asia

South Korea is currently engaged, once again, in a large-scale, expensive modernization of its military that aims to provide the country with a more robust and self-sufficient defense. The timing…

Globalization is a hallmark of the twenty first-century world. As transportation and telecommunications grow in both efficiency and level of performance and as the ambit of the Internet expands, it…

The penetration of the Internet in Korean society is usually seen as a positive development, perhaps even a model for other countries; more efficient bureaucracy, more political figures making use…

In the field of international security, few connections have been made between the Korean peninsula with the Middle East. Traditional regional studies literature focuses on Korean issues within the Asia…

In 2010, a group of Asian countries made major strides toward economic integration with the launch of the Chang Mai Initiative Multilateralization. This currency swap arrangement has had a major…

With the recent season finale of The Walking Dead and the broadcast of his visit to South Korea with talk show host Conan O'Brien this past weekend, we look back at our…

This week our guest is noted scholar and North Korea watcher Dr. Stephan Haggard. Dr. Haggard is a Professor of Korea-Pacific Studies and director of the Korea-Pacific Program at the…

At KEI, we mainly focus on the relationship between the United States and South Korea, and their approaches toward North Korea. This week, we're taking a different look at the…

In the latest public opinion poll from the Asan Institute for Policy Studies Park Geun-hye and Ahn Cheul-soo remain in a neck and neck race. While in a two way race between Park and Moon Jae-in, Park has opened up a 5 point lead. In the race to determine who will represent the progressive side,…

By Nick Miller Main Actors within North Korea Decision Making North Korea’s political structure is a set of institutions built to sustain the Kim family. The Korean Worker’s Party (WKP) and other state agencies were designed by Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il to be used to play rivals off one another and assist him in…

By Chad 0'Carroll This Friday South Korea will make a new attempt at launching a satellite using the Korea Space Launch Vehicle-1 (KSLV-1). If it is successful, the ROK will become the eleventh country in the world to have developed a national capability to send objects into orbit. But after its two previous failures, this…

By Seongjin James Ahn Recently, South Korean music artist PSY projected himself into international fame with “Gangnam Style”, a song and music video that went viral online and parodies the opulent lifestyles of Seoul’s upper class – and of those who try to imitate it.  While both humorous and entertaining, PSY’s song ultimately points to…