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,…

With worldwide familiarity of Korean pop culture increasing through the viral exposure of Korean musician Psy’s hit record “Gangnam Style”, this episode Korean Kontext speaks to Mark James Russell, author…

In this episode we spoke to B.R. Myers, author of “The Cleanest Race” and regular contributor to the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and The Atlantic.  Having been raised…

In this interview Korea Kontext speaks with Dr. Jennifer Lind, assistant professor at the Department of Government, Dartmouth College.  Well known for her work on North Korea and N.E. Asia…

In this episode we spoke to comedian and actor Steven Byrne, of the brand new TBS series “Sullivan and Sons”.  Known as one of the hardest working and energetic comics in…

By Nicholas Hamisevicz Initial KCNA and other reports about the September 25, 2012 Supreme People’s Assembly (SPA) meeting indicate North Korea has made no public announcement on economic or agricultural reforms as anticipated by numerous press articles and North Korea watchers. Proclamations following the meeting emphasized changes to North Korea’s education system. Thus, those that…

Despite Ahn Cheol-soo formally entering the race for president, his poll numbers did not see a bounce in the first Asan Institute for Policy Studies poll out since his announcement on September 19. This week's addition of the Asan Institute poll includes additional data at the end related to how South Korean's view his candidacy.    …

By Seongjin James Ahn In light of all the recent and mixed reports attempting to evaluate Korea’s economic outlook for the remainder of 2012 and beyond, many analysts have been wondering what truly lies ahead for Korea’s economy.  Is the country bound for leaner times, or will things turn around?  What will a potential economic…

In this week's Asan Institute for Policy Studies polling President Lee Myung-bak saw his approval rating slowly rise back above 30 percent by the end of the week. In the presidential race Moon Jae-in passed Ahn Cheol-soo as the favored candidate of progressives and pulled within less than 3 percent of Park Geun-hye in the…