North America

In this episode, Korean Kontext spoke to Korean-American actor Steven Yeun.  Having acted in several high profile TV shows, Yeun’s interest in acting originated during his freshman year at Kalamazoo College after watching…

On Friday January 13, the Korea Economic Institute (KEI) celebrated Korean American day at the Newseum, in Washington, DC.  As part of the celebration, KEI recognized three Korean-American pioneers in…

This episode features a conversation with Sam Yoon, Executive Director of the National Alliance of Community Economic Development Associations (NACEDA). Prior to his work with NACEDA, Sam served on the…

In this episode we hear from Korean-American filmmaker Michael Kang, who made his directorial debut at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival with The Motel, which was awarded the Humanitas Prize…

Although the US-ROK alliance is critical for the security of the Indo-Pacific region, the close bilateral military relationship has not historically extended into outer space. Policies and regulations dating to…

In the past decade, the US and South Korea faced a relatively narrow set of challenges in cyberspace, notably North Korea’s cyber crime facilitating sanctions evasion. In the next decade,…

Defense industrial cooperation between the United States and South Korea is deeply rooted in the bilateral security alliance and has evolved over time. The United States has prioritized allied cooperation…

On September 15, 2021, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States announced the formation of AUKUS, a trilateral security partnership intended to support Australia’s acquisition of nuclear-powered submarines. A…

In addition to chips and pharmaceuticals, U.S. President Donald Trump has officially stated that he plans on introducing a tariff of roughly 25 percent on cars entering the United States, beginning April 2. Its imposition is likely to severely affect U.S.-South Korea economic relations, as well as the U.S. economy itself. Passenger vehicles have constituted…

On Monday evening, President Donald Trump unveiled 25 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum imports to the United States, eliminating the exemptions that had allowed South Korea to export steel under a quota. Representing an opening salvo of second-term trade actions impacting Korea and other countries, the tariffs will deeply affect the United States’ ability…

Hallyu (or Korean Wave) looks to continue its march onward in the Year of the Blue Snake. Netflix announced that the first five days of Squid Game Season 2 netted 68 million views, breaking the company’s previous first-week debut record set by Wednesday in 2022. Since its release on December 26, the show has already…

We profile four members of the 119th Congress with Korean heritage. Andy Kim made history by becoming the first-ever Korean American elected to the US Senate and the first Asian-American senator from New Jersey or any East Coast state. Young Kim and Marilyn Strickland were reelected to represent the 40th District of California and the…