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…

Hello again after the holiday break! Just before the holidays I spoke with Hawon Lee, who was just wrapping up his nearly four years as Washington D.C. Bureau Chief of…

In this episode we speak with Mr. Ken E. Gause, currently a senior research analyst with the International Affairs Group and Iranian Studies Program at CNA Strategic Studies in Alexandria,…

In this episode, we are joined by Balbina Hwang, currently a visiting professor at Georgetown University and the National Defense University here in D.C. Ms. Hwang is here to speak…

This episode takes us directly into the office of Ambassador Han Duk-Soo, Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to the United States, who shares his thoughts on the much-anticipated G-20…

By Troy Stangarone After December’s satellite launch, February’s nuclear test, and months of talk of war, is North Korea finally beginning to turn the corner in the first full scale crisis under Kim Jong-un? As was previously documented on The Peninsula, despite the increasingly provocative rhetoric coming out of Pyongyang in recent months, there was…

By Park Jinho In the aftermath of a successful summit meeting between Korea and the U.S., the Park Geun-hye administration is preparing for a summit meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The key strategic points to consider are how to define Korea’s role and which responsibilities to share with China and the U.S. as well.…

By Troy Stangarone Ever since the United States detonated a nuclear weapon over Japan at the end of World War II, nations have felt the need to pursue a nuclear weapons program. They have sought nuclear weapons as the ultimate means of deterrent, as a means to gain leverage over their adversaries, and as a…

By Troy Stangarone, Andrew Kwon, and Peter Taves With the passing of Kim Jong-il in December of 2011, the United States and South Korea entered into a new period of uncertainty with North Korea. Shortly after Kim Jong-un assumed power, questions were raised regarding the extent of his hold on the regime in Pyongyang and…