Foreign Relations

Although the Korean Peninsula has been divided for over 70 years, North and South have not been able to make lasting progress in terms of reconciliation. While there are multiple…

The COVID-19 pandemic caught almost all countries unprepared. Some countries, including South Korea (hereafter Korea), managed to deal with the pandemic relatively more successfully than others and had a proactive…

This paper deals with one of the most critical issues in contemporary international relations: how China’s rise challenges foreign policies of U.S. allies, with a focus on the Republic of…

The rivalry between the United States and China is affecting countries in its midst. This particularly applies to South Korea. The country is a strong economic player with a successful…

By Nicholas Hamisevicz  Dennis Rodman and Seth Rogen have made the same mistake on North Korea. Both have mistakenly viewed North Korea as a helpless entity. Rodman viewed North Korea as so helpless that all it needed was someone to talk to, play basketball with, and sing “Happy Birthday” to its leader. Rogen saw North…

By Troy Stangarone At first glance, the prospect of a summit meeting between Kim Jong-un and Vladimir Putin makes sense. Both Russia and North Korea find themselves increasingly isolated internationally and a summit meeting presents a potential opportunity to demonstrate that they are not as isolated as some may believe. However, below the surface, a…

By Troy Stangarone The 2014 mid-term elections will likely mark an important turning point in U.S. foreign policy and the Obama Administration. While presidential elections can bring in entirely new administrations, mid-term elections, especially those in the second administration of a presidency, can also serve as decisive moment. As administrations look to cement their legacy…

This is the second in a 2 part series looking at the North Korea Sanctions Enforcement Act of 2014 (H.R. 1771). The first piece is available here. By Stephan Haggard To date, U.S. sanctions on North Korea have had both a strategic and defensive purpose. The strategic aim is to sharpen the choices Pyongyang faces…