Introduction

What made South Korean foreign policy different in the early 2020s? The balance between conservatives and progressives was little changed; a leader from one party gave way to […]

South Korea Confronts the New Missile Age: 2020-2022

For South Korean policy toward North Korea, the 2020-2022 period proved to be a watershed. Ever since the Sunshine Policy launched in 1998, leaders in Seoul had envisioned […]

Country Report: South Korea (December 2022)

In the months of November and December, as in previous months, Pyongyang continued its missile salvo firing 25 ballistic missiles in 12 rounds, amounting to a total of […]

Country Report: China (April 2022)

In the first months of 2022 Chinese international relations coverage examined how the Biden agenda was affecting Japan and South Korea. Chinese relations with both US allies had […]

Country Report: South Korea (October 2022)

The early autumn of 2022 saw conservative and progressive news sources focusing on ongoing issues without the drama of the Ukraine War and the Taiwan Strait conflict rising […]

Great Hopes, Shattered Dreams

President Park Geun-hye entered office with high hopes of making progress with the North by pursuing a more balanced, middle-of-the-road policy than her predecessors. Yet, her so-called “trustpolitik” […]

Candlelight Mandate, Moonshine Diplomacy, and Partisan Narratives

In 2016, conservative president Park Geun-hye’s trustpolitik crumbled with North Korea’s nuclear tests. This triggered a barrage of policy reversals, including decisions to (1) deploy the US anti-ballistic […]

Gambling on Great Power Relations

The four years from 2016 to 2019 saw both a high point in expectations that Seoul could reshape geopolitics in Northeast Asia and a low point in awareness […]

Country Report: South Korea (September 2021)

With the end of his term drawing near, President Moon seemed to be in a race against the clock to revive the stalled Korea peace initiative. His August […]

Country Report: China (April 2021)

In early 2021, Chinese analysts assessed new directions in US foreign policy under the Biden administration, with particular reference to China and Russia. They examined the impact of […]