Asia

This paper provides an analytical assessment of the implications for North and South Korea of recent changes in the Chinese-Russian and U.S.-Japanese security relationships.The evolution of these two security relationships…

During the past few years, the United States has begun three important initiatives that alter its defense commitment to South Korea (Republic of Korea [ROK]). First, Washington started to decrease…

In October 2006, Kim Jong-il’s North Korea again seized international attention. With its claimed underground nuclear test, Pyongyang upped the ante in its confrontation with the United States and the…

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…

What Happened Last year, President Moon Jae-in announced the Youth Hope Package Assistance, an approximately USD 17 billion-budget project to address the youth’s economic challenges. The package includes a recently-announced college tuition assistance plan to support families with multiple children. The new policy comes as a growing number of people struggle with the high cost of housing and childcare in Korea.…

As the world becomes more globalized, culture is not only being exchanged, integrated, and fused but also returned in a new form. Korean fried chicken is an example of how an American dish became transformed in Korea and returned to the United States. Fried chicken was introduced to Korea through American troops stationed in the…

What Happened In May 2021, South Korea reached almost 16 million 5G subscribers. South Korea’s ICT ministry stated plans to create around 1,800 companies that specialize in new 5G services over the next 5 years to power tech services such as remote-controlled factories, self-driving vehicles, virtual reality, and more. Yet, 5G mobile users have filed lawsuits against mobile carriers arguing…

What Happened A July 2021 report from the Bank of Korea showed that housing prices in the country have surged by 47% since 2017. The Moon administration implemented a series of regulations over the past four years to cool the overheated housing market. The central bank chief expressed concerns that low interest rates - adopted to cope with the…