Foreign Relations

This chapter compares the foreign policy responses of three “core” ASEAN states—Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore—vis-à-vis an assertive China and a rebalancing America.1 The weaker states have all pursued a hedging…

The four papers in Section 1 compare hedging behavior in countries on the frontline between the rising power China and the reigning hegemon, the United States. The first paper by…

Despite an inferior information communication environment, North Korea has a high capacity to conduct robust cyber operations aimed at collecting foreign intelligence, disrupting foreign comput-ers, information and communication systems, networks…

On several occasions since 2013, crashed North Korean drones have been discovered in strategically significant areas in South Korea. Do North Korean drones represent a threat to Korean security? How…

Recent remarks by China’s ambassador to Seoul have prompted strong and diverse reactions from media and politicians in the region. During a press spray prior to having dinner with South Korea’s opposition Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung at the Chinese ambassador’s residence on June 8, China’s Ambassador Xing Haiming in prepared remarks cautioned South Korea…

In mid-May, President Yoon Suk Yeol became the fourth Korean president to participate in a Group of Seven summit. Korea was among the eight states invited to observe the gathering hosted by Japan in the city of Hiroshima. Over the course of three days, President Yoon met with both other world leaders as well as…

A remarkably detailed joint statement emerged from the May 22, 2023, summit meeting in Seoul between President Yoon Suk Yeol and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel--the twin leadership of the EU.  The statement noted the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the EU and ROK; described common…

As Korea and Japan work to resolve their differences, their neighbor China has been watching very carefully. After the summit, the Chinese foreign ministry emphasized the need for stable economic relations for prosperity between Beijing, Seoul and Tōkyō. “China opposes certain countries’ attempts to form exclusionary cliques,” said Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Wang Wenbin…