Politics

More than two decades ago, when the USSR still existed and the concept of the world socialist system presumed that all socialist countries were developing as one, I argued (still…

One cannot enter the same river twice. Every time one looks at North Korea, on the surface it appears boringly the same. Its life fl ows in the same predictable…

As one might say that, without a proper understanding of juche, Kim Il-sung’s North Korea cannot be comprehended, one might also say that a proper understanding of Kim Jong-il’s North…

The global community has plainly noticed the critical role played by the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in inducing change in North Korea’s diplomatic behavior, particularly with respect to the…

By Troy Stangarone In 2017, much of the world’s attention turned to the Korean Peninsula. South Korean politics underwent major changes as President Park Geun-hye became the first South Korean president to be removed from office and a snap election was held in May that saw the election of Moon Jae-in. North Korea also dominated…

By Juni Kim U.S. President Donald Trump will make his first visit in office to South Korea tomorrow as part of his trip to Asia, which comes at a crucial point in U.S.-Korea relations. The recent string of North Korean provocations, including a successful intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) test in July and North Korea’s sixth…

By Mark Tokola There is a small but growing body of commentary arguing that Washington and Seoul are drifting apart on North Korea policy.  At the headline level, there clearly is a difference in tone between President Trump’s tough rhetoric and President Moon Jae-in’s insistence that the only acceptable resolution to the North Korean nuclear…

By Hwan Kang When Moon Jae-in was elected after former President Park Geun-hye was impeached, Koreans expected major policy makeovers. Indeed, the Moon Administration is trying to meet expectations by addressing some of Korea’s long lasting problems by announcing progressive measures such as an increase in the minimum wage and regulating the real estate market.…