Asia

The Fall 2024 issue of Korea Policy, Broadening the Alliance: New Frontiers in US-South Korea Cooperation, is a special issue focused on the US-ROK alliance. The issue is motivated by…

The Joe Biden and Yoon Suk-yeol administrations have embraced the expansion of economic cooperation within the US-ROK alliance, leading to the emergence of South Korea as a valued technology partner…

The security alliance between the United States and South Korea, once focused primarily on military defense, is evolving to include economic security and technological cooperation. The evolving partnership between the…

This paper elucidates how Washington and Seoul cooperate on AI and quantum technologies, both recognized as critical emerging technologies essential to their national interests. Technology cooperation is denoted as government-to-government…

Recently released data from the Department of Commerce confirmed that the United States achieved record-level export of services to South Korea in 2018 – $24.5 billion. Combined with the trade…

We imagine North Korea as a country that is carrying on not only a conflict left over from the Cold War, but also a decrepit legacy economy from the past.…

The second summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on February 27 and 28 ended without an agreement. The key difference in the two leaders’ negotiating…

As the complex negotiations between North Korea, the United States, and South Korea continue, it is worthwhile to review what the current U.S. presence on the Korean Peninsula looks like.…

What Happened On March 26, the South Korean Defense Minister met with his Indian counterpart to discuss mutual cooperation. Items discussed included increasing defense ties, arms sales, and foreign direct investment. Korean companies are interested in partnering with the Indian military to supply anti-aircraft defense systems and participate in shipbuilding projects. Implications: While Korea has not joined any formal coalitions aiming…

Thomas Bach, current Chairman of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), published a lengthy opinion piece about the Olympic Games last October.  In a strong defense of the games as “an event that unites the world,” he unequivocally proclaimed that “the Olympic Games are not about politics.” While keeping politics out of the Olympic Games may…

With inflation undershooting its 2% medium-term target, the Bank of Korea (BoK) cut its policy rate by 50 basis points twice in 2019 (Figure 1). Faced with further disinflationary pressures during the COVID-19 pandemic, the central bank cut the rate by another 50 basis points in March 2020 and 25 basis points in May, to…

What Happened On March 24th, the United Nations Human Rights Council adopted its 19th resolution condemning North Korea’s human rights abuses. South Korea is not a co-sponsor of the resolution, though it will allow the resolution to be passed through consensus. This is the third year in a row that South Korea has not co-sponsored the resolution based on…