Korean Kontext

Volcanologist Dr. Kayla Iacovino traveled to North Korea in 2013 as part of a team that was collaborating with North Korean scientists to study Mt. Baekdu, one of Korea's most important historical and cultural places and the site of a huge eruption one thousand years ago. Dr. Iacovino sat down with KEI's Nicholas Hamisevicz to discuss her trip, the science behind the big eruption, and opportunities for science diplomacy.Photo courtesy of  bumix2000's photostream on flickr Creative Commons.

Nicholas Hamisevicz has been KEI's director of research and academic affairs for four years. Now, he is leaving KEI to pursue his Ph.D at Catholic University. But before he goes, he sits down with KEI's Jenna Gibson to discuss some of the major trends in U.S.-Korea relations that have emerged over his time working for KEI, as well as some of his predictions for the future of the partnership and the region.

Within China, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is a principle stakeholder in Beijing’s policy decision-making. In recent years, PLA officials have penned some of the more interesting, and forceful, articles in the media, which in turn has fueled speculation from Western analysts about a potential shift in China’s approach to the North.Does Chinese military commentary represent accurate and authoritative views on policy toward North Korea? Are there certain military officials or publications that we should watch closely? Do these commentaries by Chinese military officials actually influence China’s policy toward North Korea?Researcher Nathan Beauchamp-Mustafaga sits down with KEI’s Nicholas Hamisevicz to discuss his analysis of these media commentaries. Please click here to read his recent KEI APS paper on these PLA media appearances and click here to view the July 22, 2015 program.

Over the past few years, North Korea has been holding press conferences starring so-called re-defectors – people who fled to the South and chose to return. Steven Denney and Christopher Green sit down with KEI’s Nicholas Hamisevicz to discuss their analysis of these press conferences and their place in North Korea’s information management strategy. Please click here to read their recent KEI APS paper on these re-defector press conferences and to view the March 12, 2015 program.

With the recent retirement by Yi So-yeon, South Korea's remaining astronaut, many have turned attention to Korea, wondering whether there is a future for its space program. According to Daniel Pinkston of the International Crisis Group, South Korea's space program is a necessary and integral part of President Park Geun-hye's future economic policies. Furthermore, it can and is being used used to enhance its relations with its allies. Challenges that do arise include how its space program affects the security situation in the region and whether enough data is being shared between countries to properly manage peaceful exploration and usage of space.Please click here to read his recent KEI APS paper on South Korea's space program and to view the September 10, 2014 program.

Since the famine of the 1990s, North Korea has continued to face periods of chronic food shortages. However, the humanitarian needs of the people in North Korea extend beyond the adequate provision of food. Jérome Sauvage, the Deputy Director of the United Nations Development Program’s Representation Office in Washington, DC and served the UN Coordinator in the DPRK , discusses life in North Korea and the humanitarian challenges the population faces from a lack of food, potable water, electricity, and a collapsed healthcare system.

North Korea has engaged in various forms of economic reforms and marketization attempts such as establishing Special Economic Zones and obtaining Foreign Direct Investment. Yet, many of North Korea’s current and potential investors are skeptical about investing in a country with little transparency, high unpredictability, and investor safeguards. Dr. Stephan M. Haggard of UC San Diego’s School of International Relations and Pacific Studies explains the problems and challenges, as well as the potential, of reforming North Korea’s economy. Dr. Haggard also touches upon the issue of reunification in relation to the North’s economy, and how Pyongyang’s neighbors can influence the future of North Korea’s economy.

In this episode, we talk with Dr. Yiagadeesen Samy of Carleton University on income inequality in South Korea and its affect on Korea’s economy. Dr. Samy is an economist and an Associate Professor at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada. He is also a Distinguished Research Associate at the North-South Institute. Dr. Samy has written an Academic Paper Series report for KEI on income inequality, and he has done previous work looking at income inequality in the other countries. Before this research on South Korea, he was examining income inequality in Brazil.Please click here to view Dr. Samy's paper and presentation.

In this episode, we talk with Dr. Adam Cathcart of theUniversityof Leeds and of Sino-NK about China-North Korea relations. Dr. Cathcart has just written an Academic Paper Series report for KEI examiningChina-North Korea cooperation in Special Economic Zonesalong the border and the future of the Chinese-North Korean relationship after the purge of Jang Song-taek. He also recently visited the border region between China and North Korea.Articles and books mentioned in this podcast:Adam Cathcart, “In the Shadow of Jang Song-taek: Pyongyang’s Evolving SEZ Strategy with the Hwanggumpyeong and Wihwa Islands,” Korea Economic Institute of America, Academic Paper Series, June 19, 2014.http://www.keia.org/sites/default/files/publications/kei_aps_cathcart_2014.pdfPlease click here to view the video of the June 19, 2014 program with Dr. Cathcart

President Obama wasn't the only leader who had to make important visits to multiple Asian countries this past April. Australia’s Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, had to make an important trip of his own to Japan, South Korea, and China. Hayley Channer, an Analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, who is also a Visiting Scholar at the East-West Center in Washington, DC, believes that there are some interesting comparisons and themes that can be drawn from the trips of these two leaders. In addition, she also thinks there is room for Australia to help mend Korea-Japan ties. In this episode, we discuss these ideas as well as Australia’s views of Korea and Asia.Articles and books mentioned in this podcast:  Hayley Channer, “Australia’s Gains in Northeast Asia Pave the Way for Obama’s Trip,” April 22, 2014, East-West Center, Asia Pacific Bulletin, No. 258, at http://www.eastwestcenter.org/publications/australia%E2%80%99s-gains-in-northeast-asia-pave-the-way-obama%E2%80%99s-tripHayley Channer, “Manufacturing Partners: Japan-South Korea security Cooperation and Australia’s Potential Role,” Australian Strategic Policy Institute, Strategic Insight, March 2014, at https://www.aspi.org.au/publications/manufacturing-partners-japan-south-korea-security-cooperation-and-australias-potential-role/SI69Japan_ROK.pdfHugh White, The China Choice: Why America Should Share Power, Black Inc, Melbourne Australia, 2012.Hugh White, “Power Shift: Australia’s Future between Washington and Beijing,” Quarterly Essay No. 39.

The Francis Effect is everywhere. Time Magazine named Pope Francis their 2013 Person of the Year, another magazine dedicated specifically to covering Pope Francis has been started in Italy, and politicians and leaders are trying to use the Pope’s messages as support for their own causes. The Francis effect will be large in Asia this year as the Vatican announced that Pope Francis will visit South Korea in August. Moreover, with the canonization of Pope John XXIII and Pope John Paul II on April 27, this gives us an opportunity to examine the last time a Pope visited South Korea as well. In this episode, we talk via Skype with Father Dennis McNamara of Georgetown University, about Pope John Paul II’s 1984 and 1989 visits to South Korea, the progression of Catholicism and religion in Korea, and potential themes for Pope Francis’s visit in August. Father Dennis McNamara, S.J. is the Park Professor of Sociology and Korean Studies at Georgetown University He is also the Special Assistant for China Affairs to Georgetown University’s President. He serves as a member of the Council of Foreign Relations in New York, and chairs the weekly Korea Seminar at the Foreign Service Institute of the U.S. State Department. In Asia, he serves as an Adjunct Professor in the Graduate School of International Studies at Sogang University in Seoul, and lectures at Renmin and Fudan Universities in China, Waseda and Sophia Universities in Tokyo, and Thammasat University in Bangkok.

Public opinion can help to both shape and inform public policy. A president with strong approval numbers across ideological divides has significant scope to make policy decisions. While a national consensus on an issue can both help to facilitate policy options and limit the scope for compromise on critical foreign policy issues. To discuss this important aspect of the policy process, Korean Kontext sat down with Karl Friedhoff of the Asan Institute for Policy Studies to discuss the favorability of the new Park Geun-hye administration, the future influence of the United States and China on global affairs, as well as the prospect of a new norm in Korea-Japan relations.

In the mid-1990s, North Korea experienced a famine that by some estimates wiped out 10 percent of the population. Though many at the time thought the regime would collapse, it has maintained control on power while at times allowing markets to spring up to supplement the state economy. At various points these openings have led to speculation that North Korea could engage in Chinese style economic reforms.With Kim Jong-un now calling for his regime to pursue both guns and butter, it has again raised speculation that North Korea could engage in economic reforms. While it is still unclear if this is indeed the case, Korean Kontext sat down withRüdiger Frank, Professor at the University of Vienna,to discuss the challenges North Korea would face if it pursued economic reform , how regional leadership changes could impact Pyoungyang’s calculations, and the prospects for the new South Korean administration’s policy of Trustpolitik.

Over the last decade, China has become an increasingly important country for South Korea has it has emerged as Seoul’s largest trading partner and a leading player in efforts to convince North Korea to abandon its nuclear ambitions. However, China’s increasing influence in recent years has also raised concerns among the nations of Northeast and Southeast Asia.With new leadership now in place in both Seoul and Beijing, Korean Kontext sat down with Dr. David Kang, Director of the Korean Studies Institute and Professor of International Relations and Business at the University of Southern California, to discuss the impacts of China’s rise on Northeast Asia and the future of South Korea’s relations with China under Park Geun-hye and Xi Jinping.

On April 8, North Korea withdrew all of its workers from the Kaesong Industrial Complex, temporarily placing on hold the last form of cooperation between North and South Korea from the sunshine era. The complex, which employed 53,000 North Korean workers at 123 South Korean factories, served as an important form of cooperation and had become the primary avenue for trade between the two Koreas. Prior to the decision to reopen the complex, Korean Kontext spoke with:Marcus Noland of the Peterson Institute for International EconomicsMark Manyin of the Congressional Research Service (CRS)about the history of the Kaesong Industrial Complex, the challenges in making it commercially viable once it reopens, and the prospects for international investment.