Foreign Relations

South Korea’s nation-building project during the Cold War relied heavily on strong state direction designed to generate a sense of cohesion and national identity. These strategies were conceived and executed…

It is tempting to see in developments in contemporary Japanese politics indications of a fundamental shift in Japanese national identity. Resist that temptation. There are changes afoot in Tokyo, but…

The roller coaster of relations between Japan and South Korea has taken a sudden jolt with the December 28, 2015 agreement on “comfort women.” Some anticipate a turning point, stabilizing…

On December 28, 2015, the Japanese and South Korean governments announced their agreement on the “comfort women” issue. This sudden breakthrough 70 years after the end of WWII and 24…

By Peter Crail The upcoming Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul will, for the second time, bring significant high-level attention to the threat of nuclear terrorism and the global responsibility of nuclear material security. World leaders have recognized that a nuclear terrorist attack anywhere would have global consequences, and that with enough nuclear material spread around…

By Sarah K. Yun On Friday, March 16, 2012, North Korea announced that it will launch a long-range rocket in April which will carry a “working” satellite. The Korean Central News Agency, North Korea’s state-run media, stated that the satellite named Kwangmyongsong-3 will “strictly abide by relevant international regulations and usage concerning the launch of…

By Dr. Richard Weitz During his campaign for the Russian presidency, Vladimir Putin wrote several lengthy articles detailing his views and policy recommendations. In his foreign policy treatise, Putin devoted a surprising amount of attention to North Korea. Putin writes that, “We have consistently advocated the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula - exclusively through political…

By Sarah K. Yun Traditionally, Korea’s major diplomatic and trade partners consisted of the United States, Japan, China, Europe, and Russia. Under President Lee Myung-bak’s “New Asia Initiative,” Korea has boosted its engagements in the Asia-Pacific, especially smaller neighbors in the region. The rationale is that Korea can serve as an excellent and non-threatening model…