Foreign Relations

At a Russo-Korean summit in August 2011 Kim Jong-il announced his willingness to resume the Six-Party Talks without preconditions, i.e. no denuclearization or apologies. He also accepted Moscow’s long-standing idea…

When scholars and commentators discuss Japan’s response to nuclear-armed North Korea, many jump to the conclusion that Japan will start thinking about arming itself with nuclear weapons while others contend…

Change over continuity is now the tenor of the times on the Korean peninsula and beyond. For one thing, the year 2012—dubbed “Super Year”—has begun with election-year politics in many…

Most studies of contemporary Northeast Asian security focus on the U.S. interaction with China, Japan or South Korea and are concerned with aspects of national power.1 The present chapter takes…

This is the first in a two part series looking at the entry of South and North Korea into the United Nations. The second part can be found here. September 17 marked the 30th anniversary of the entry of North Korea and South Korea into full membership in the United Nations.  In recommending admission of…

The New Southern Policy Plus (NSP Plus) was announced by President Moon Jae-in at the 21st ASEAN-ROK Summit on November 12, 2020. While maintaining emphasis on economic partnerships, the NSP Plus identifies collective recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic and sustainability as critical areas for cooperation. It expands on the original NSP’s three-pillar framework of “People,…

After the first U.S-North Korea summit held in Singapore in 2018, President Donald Trump and Chairman Kim Jong-un vowed to “establish new U.S.–DPRK relations in accordance with the desire of the peoples of the two countries for peace and prosperity.” Although an end of war declaration has been identified as one way for both sides…

In the summer of 2017 Rex Tillerson, during his tenure as Secretary of State for the first 13 months of the Trump administration, authorized a “Geographical Travel Restriction” prohibiting U.S. citizens from traveling “into, through or in North Korea.”  The travel prohibition became effective on September 1, 2017, and it was valid for one year. …