Foreign Relations

China’s political attitudes toward the Korean peninsula and its role in managing North Korea have been a constant source of intrigue for many Asia watchers in the U.S. Trying to…

This PDF is the full publication and contains all of the following sections: KEI Board of Directors KEI Advisory Council Preface Download PDF here Political Change in 2010-2012 and Regional…

The year 2012 may be determinative in transforming the leadership that will decide the fate of the hexagonal maneuvering over the North Korean nuclear threat and the prospects for reunification.…

By Nicholas Hamisevicz Jang Song-taek, Vice-Chairman of North Korea’s National Defense Commission and uncle to Kim Jong-un, returned from China after several days of meetings about economic cooperation between the two nations, especially in the Special Economic Zones (SEZs). Jang brought back agreements on further SEZ cooperation and a renewed commitment by both parties to…

By Troy Stangarone The end of the Cold War is primarily remembered for the fall of the Berlin Wall, the end of the Soviet Union, and the reunification of Germany. However, in Asia one of its most significant impacts was to pave the way for South Korea and China to establish formal relations two decades…

By Sarah K. Yun After the failed April 13 rocket launch, North Korea seemed to be headed towards increased isolation from the international community. The United Nations Security Council tightened the sanctions regime, while the United States canceled the 24,000 metric tons of food aid that had been part of the “Leap Day” Agreement. However,…

By Nicholas Hamisevicz In a recent column in the New York Times, David Brooks describes the contradictory nature of the Olympic Games to argue that those working in business and politics must be able to embrace and work with opposite impulses in order to be successful. He notes that the world is a contradictory place…