Korea Policy Forum

04/17/24 | Korea Policy Forum with Speaker Kim Jin-pyo

April 10, 2024April 17, 2024Archived Events, Korea Policy ForumLeave a Comment

Dynamics of the ROK-US Alliance: Bridging the Past, Present and Future

Wednesday, April 17, 2024

09:30 AM – 10:30 AM EDT

Hybrid Event

Elliott School of International Affairs, George Washington University (Room B12)

1957 E Street NW, Washington, DC 20052

Virtual via Zoom

See the Event Program

The ROK-U.S. alliance, originally conceived as a military and security pact 70 years ago, has since evolved into a “global comprehensive strategic alliance.” Rooted in shared values such as liberal democracy and a market economy, this alliance seeks to cultivate an “Alliance in Action towards the Future” by identifying potential areas of collaboration, thereby laying the groundwork for the next 70 years. In this special lecture, Speaker Kim Jin-pyo will reflect on the trajectory of the ROK-U.S. alliance over the past 70 years and delve into its future prospects for bilateral cooperation, with a particular focus on economic and political spheres, envisioning the next seven decades. With an illustrious career spanning key governmental roles including Deputy Prime Minister for the Economy and Deputy Prime Minister for Education, Speaker Kim has been a prominent figure in Korean politics for the past two decades. Drawing upon his extensive experience as a public servant and politician, he aims to offer insights and inspiring guidance for the next generation of leaders who will serve as vital connectors for the ROK-U.S. alliance. Furthermore, Speaker Kim will present his vision for fostering enhanced bilateral exchanges and cooperation between the two allies.

Speaker

portrait of Gregg Brazinsky in professional attire

HIS EXCELLENCY KIM JIN-PYO has served as Speaker of the 21^st National Assembly of the Republic of Korea (ROK) since July 2022. He started his career in civil service after passing the Senior Civil Service Examination in 1973. He held high-level government offices including Director General of Taxation (1999-2001) and Vice Minister of the Ministry of Finance and Economy (2001-2002), Senior Secretary for Policy and Planning in the President’s Office (2002), Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Economy (2003-2005), and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education and Human Resources Development (2005-2008). First elected to the National Assembly in 2004, he has since represented the 5^th District of Suwon City in Gyeonggi Province for 20 years. He was affiliated with the Democratic Party before his election as Speaker, a position that requires him to remain independent. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Law from Seoul National University, a Master of Arts in Public Administration from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and an Honorary Doctorate in Public Administration from Cumberland University. He has been invited to deliver guest lectures by a number of prestigious institutions, including Harvard University, Stanford University, and the University of California, Berkeley.

Moderator

JISOO M. KIM is Korea Foundation Associate Professor of History, International Affairs, and East Asian Languages and Literatures at George Washington University. She is Founding Director of the GW Institute for Korean Studies (2017-Present) and Founding Co-Director of the East Asia National Resource Center (2018-Present). She also serves as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Korean Studies (2020-Present). She specializes in gender, sexuality, law, emotions, and affect in Korean history. She is the author of The Emotions of Justice: Gender, Status, and Legal Performance in Chosŏn Korea (University of Washington Press, 2016), which was awarded the 2017 James Palais Prize of the Association for Asian Studies. She is currently working on a book project tentatively entitled Criminalizing Intimacy: Marriage, Concubinage, and Adultery Law in Korea, 1469-2015. In 2023, she received a Distinguished Research Award from the Ministry of Education in South Korea. She received her M.A., M.Phil., and Ph.D. in East Asian Languages and Cultures from Columbia University.

04/16/24 | Korea Policy Forum, South Korea’s National Assembly Elections and US-ROK Relations: Journalists’ Views

April 3, 2024April 17, 2024Archived Events, Korea Policy ForumLeave a Comment

Korea Policy Forum

South Korea’s National Assembly Elections and US-ROK Relations:

Journalists’ Views

Tuesday, April 16, 2024

09:00 AM – 10:15 PM EST

10:00 PM – 11:15 PM KST

Virtual Event via Zoom

See the Event Program

On April 10th, South Korea held general elections for its National Assembly. While the major opposition party strives to maintain its current majority party status, the emergence of new third parties complicates the traditional two-way race between the ruling and major opposition parties. The results of the elections will greatly impact the remaining three years of the Yoon government’s term. What were the main political parties’ strategies and challenges leading up to the elections and how did they lead to the election outcome? How will the political landscape, including the power relations within the main political parties, shift in the coming months? What will be the potential impact of the election results on Seoul’s repositioning its foreign and security policy? Please join the GW Institute for Korean Studies and East Asia National Resource Center for an online discussion by American and South Korean journalists on the prospects of a new domestic political geography in South Korea and its potential impact on U.S.-ROK relations.

Speakers (Alphabetical Order)

HEEJUN KIM is the Head of the International News Department at YTN, a news channel in Korea. Prior to this role, she served as the head of Foreign Affairs and Security News. Kim was a former Washington Correspondent from 2016 to 2019, during which she conducted exclusive interviews with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and National Security Adviser Herbert R. McMaster. Kim was a professional fellow at the Weatherhead East Asian Institute of Columbia University in New York from 2011 to 2012. She also serves as a policy advisor at MOFA. Additionally, she co-translated “International Negotiations” by Victor A. Kremenyuk. She holds a B.A. and M.A. in Journalism and Mass Communication from Ewha Womans University and completed her doctoral program in International Politics at Kyunggi University.

JUNG EUN LEE is the Deputy Managing Director of the Newsroom at the Dong-A Ilbo Daily in South Korea. She worked as a Washington correspondent from 2019 to 2021. She specializes in national security and foreign affairs, and has been reporting on North Korea, denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, and U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy. She was dispatched to Channel A, the affiliate broadcasting company of Dong-A Ilbo, as a senior reporter at the political desk in 2014. She was a visiting scholar at the U.S.-Korea Institute (USKI) at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies from 2014 to 2015. She obtained her B.A. in journalism from Seoul National University, and an M.A. from the Graduate School of North Korean Studies.

TIM MARTIN is the Korea bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal, where he oversees news coverage on the Korean Peninsula. He has been based in Seoul since early 2017, with prior stints at the Journal’s offices in New York, Chicago and Atlanta—where he covered public health and the CDC. He holds a B.A. in Journalism from Eastern Illinois University and also previously studied Korean at Seoul National University.

JOSH ROGIN is a columnist for the Global Opinions section of the Washington Post. He is also the author of Chaos Under Heaven: Trump, Xi, and the Battle for the 21^st Century, released in March, 2021 by Houghton Mifflin Harcout. Previously, he has covered foreign policy and national security for Bloomberg View, Newsweek, The Daily Beast, Foreign Policy magazine, Congressional Quarterly, Federal Computer Week magazine, and Japan’s Asahi Shimbun. His work has been featured on outlets including NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX, MSNBC, NPR, and many more. He has been recognized with the Interaction Award for Excellence in International Reporting and as a Finalist for the Livingston Award for Young Journalists. He has also received journalism fellowships from the Knight Foundation, the East-West Center, and the National Press Foundation. He has a B.A. in international affairs from the George Washington University and studied at Sophia University in Tokyo, Japan. He lives in Washington, DC with his wife Ali Rogin of the PBS News Hour.

Moderator

YONHO KIM is the Associate Director of the GW Institute for Korean Studies and an Associate Research Professor of Practice. He specializes in North Korea’s mobile telecommunications and U.S. policy towards North Korea. Kim is the author of North Korean Phone Money: Airtime Transfers as a Precursor to Mobile Payment System (2020), North Korea’s Mobile Telecommunications and Private Transportation Services in the Kim Jong-un Era (2019) and Cell Phones in North Korea: Has North Korea Entered the Telecommunications Revolution? (2014). His research findings were covered by various media outlets, including Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, Yonhap News, and Libération. Prior to joining GWIKS, he extensively interacted with the Washington policy circle on the Korean peninsula as Senior Researcher of the U.S.-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, Senior Reporter for Voice of America’s Korean Service, and Assistant Director of the Atlantic Council’s Program on Korea in Transition. He holds a B.A. and M.A. in International Relations from Seoul National University, and an M.A. in International Relations and International Economics from Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies.

03/07/24 | Korea Policy Forum: The United States-South Korea Alliance

February 27, 2024March 12, 2024Archived Events, Korea Policy ForumLeave a Comment

Korea Policy Forum

The United States-South Korea Alliance: Why It May Fail and Why It Must Not

Thursday, March 7, 2024

12:30 PM – 02:00 PM EST

Hybrid Event

Elliott School of International Affairs, George Washington University (Room 505)

1957 E Street Northwest Room 505 Washington, DC 20052

Virtual via Zoom

See the Event Program

The alliance between the United States and South Korea has endured through seven decades of shifting regional and geopolitical security contexts. Yet it now faces challenges from within. Domestic political turmoil, including deepening political polarization and rising nationalism in both countries, has cast doubt on the alliance’s viability―with critical implications for the balance of power in East Asia.

Scott A. Snyder provides an authoritative overview of the internal and external pressures on the U.S.–South Korea alliance and explores its future prospects. He argues that nationalist leaders’ accession to power could put past successes at risk and endanger the national security objective of both countries. In the United States, “America first” nationalism favors self-interest over cooperation and portrays allies as burdens or even free riders. “Korea first” sentiments, in both progressive and conservative forms, present the U.S. military presence in South Korea as an obstacle to Korean reconciliation or a shackle on South Korea’s freedom of action. Snyder also examines North Korea’s attempts to influence South Korean domestic politics and how China’s growing strength has affected the dynamics of the alliance. He considers scenarios in which the U.S.–South Korea relationship weakens or crumbles, emphasizing the consequences for the region and the world. Drawing on this analysis, Snyder offers timely recommendations for stakeholders in both countries on how to preserve and strengthen the alliance. The GW Institute for Korean Studies and East Asia National Resource Center invite you to join us for this special lecture which will highlight newly-unfolding opportunities and challenges related to a new chapter of the U.S.-ROK alliance.

Speakers

SCOTT A. SNYDER is senior fellow for Korea studies and director of the program on U.S.-Korea policy at the Council on Foreign Relations. Starting on April 1, Mr. Snyder will assume the role of president and chief executive officer at the Korea Economic Institute of America. Mr. Snyder is the author of The United States-South Korea Alliance: Why It May Fail and Why It Must Not (December 2023) and South Korea at the Crossroads: Autonomy and Alliance in an Era of Rival Powers (January 2018). Mr. Snyder received a BA from Rice University and an MA from the regional studies East Asia program at Harvard University.

Discussant

NICHOLAS ANDERSON is Assistant Professor of International Affairs and Associate Director of the Master of Arts International Affairs Program in the Elliott School of International Affairs. His research and teaching interests include great power politics, territorial conflict and expansion, conventional military operations, cybersecurity, and East Asian international relations. He previously held fellowships at the Institute for Security and Conflict Studies at the Elliott School, the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School, the MacMillan Center Program on Japanese Politics and Diplomacy at Yale University, and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. His research and other writings have been published in International Security, International Interactions, Political Science Quarterly, The Washington Quarterly, Strategic Studies Quarterly, the Australian Journal of International Affairs, and International Relations of the Asia-Pacific, among other outlets.

Moderator

CELESTE ARRINGTON is Korea Foundation Associate Professor of Political Science and International Affairs at GW. She specializes in comparative public policy, law and social change, lawyers, and governance, with a regional focus on the Koreas and Japan. She is also interested in Northeast Asian security, North Korean human rights, and transnational activism. Her first book was Accidental Activists: Victim Movements and Governmental Accountability in Japan and South Korea (Cornell, 2016). She has published numerous articles and, with Patricia Goedde, she co-edited Rights Claiming in South Korea (Cambridge, 2021). Her current book project analyzes the legalistic turn in Korean and Japanese governance through paired case studies related to tobacco control and disability rights. She received a PhD from UC Berkeley, an MPhil from the University of Cambridge, and an AB from Princeton University. She is a core faculty of the GW Institute for Korean Studies (GWIKS) and president of the Association of Korean Political Studies. Her recent article“Knowledge production through legal mobilization: Environmental activism against the U.S. military bases in East Asia” with Claudia Kim won the Asian Law and Society Association’s distinguished article award.

12/13/2023 | Korea Policy Forum: Linking the European and Asian Theaters?: Strategic Implications of New North Korea-Russia Relations

November 30, 2023December 19, 2023Archived Events, Korea Policy ForumLeave a Comment

Korea Policy Forum

Linking the European and Asian Theaters?:

Strategic Implications of New North Korea-Russia Relations

Wednesday, December 13, 2023

2:00 PM – 3:30 PM EST

Hybrid Event

1957 E Street Northwest Washington, DC

Linder Family Commons, Room 602

Virtual via Zoom

See the Event Program

The summit meeting between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin last September, coupled with the subsequent deepening cooperation between the two nations, carries significant ramifications for the geopolitical landscape in both Northeast Asia and Europe. The potential for North Korea to extend military support to Russia’s actions in Ukraine, combined with the possibilities of enhanced economic and military technology collaboration between Russia and North Korea, poses a substantial challenge to U.S. global geostrategic considerations. These developments also bear noteworthy consequences for the recently established trilateral cooperation framework among the U.S., South Korea, and Japan. The GW Institute for Korean Studies, East Asian National Resource Center, Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies, and the Research Institute for National Security Affairs at the Korea National Defense University warmly invite you to join us for an engaging discussion on this important topic.

Welcoming Remarks

Henry Hale is the Director of the Elliott School’s Institute for European, Russian, and Eurasian Studies and Professor of Political Science and International Affairs. He has spent extensive time conducting field research in post-Soviet Eurasia and is currently working on identity politics and political system change, with a special focus now on public opinion dynamics in Russia and Ukraine. His work has won two prizes from the American Political Science Association and includes the books The Zelensky Effect (Hurst/Oxford 2022) and Patronal Politics (Cambridge, 2015). For the period from 2009-2023, he served as Director or Co-Director of the Program on New Approaches to Research and Security in Eurasia (PONARS Eurasia). Prior to joining GW, he taught at Indiana University (2000-2005), the European University at St. Petersburg, Russia (1999), and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy (1997-98). He is also chair of the editorial board of Demokratizatsiya: The Journal of Post-Soviet Democratization

Jisoo M. Kim is the Director of the GW Institute for Korean Studies, the CoDirector of the East Asia National Resource Center, and Korea Foundation Associate Professor of History, International Affairs, and East Asian Languages and Literatures. She also serves as the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Korean Studies. She is a specialist in gender, law, and emotions in Korean history. Her broader research interests include gender and sexuality, crime and justice, forensic medicine, literary representations of the law, history of emotions, vernacular, and gender writing. She is the author of The Emotions of Justice: Gender, Status, and Legal Performance in Chosŏn Korea (University of Washington Press, 2015), which was awarded the 2017 James Palais Prize of the Association for Asian Studies. She is also the co-editor of The Great East Asian War and the Birth of the Korean Nation by JaHyun Kim Haboush (Columbia University Press, 2016). She is currently working on a book project tentatively entitled Sexual Desire, Crime, and Gendered Subjects: A History of Adultery Law in Korea. She received her M.A., M.Phil., and Ph.D. in East Asian Languages and Cultures from Columbia University.

Young-June Park is the Director General of the Research Institute for National Security Affairs at Korea National Defense University and Professor of the College of National Security. He also conducted research as a visiting scholar at the program on U.S.-Japan relations of Harvard University from 2010 to 2011 and 2015 to 2016. He published and co-authored several books and dozens of articles focusing on the issue of Japanese security policy and East Asian security affairs, including The Third Japan (in Korean, 2008), International Politics of Security (in Korean, 2010), The Status and Tasks of International Security in the 21st Century (in Korean, 2011), The Birth of Navy and Making of Modern Japan (in Korean, 2014), South Korea‘s National Security Strategy: Evolution and Challenges (in Korean, 2017), and Imperial Japan’s Wars, 1868-1945 (2020). He has served as a policy adviser for South Korea’s National Security Council, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Unification, the ROK-US Combined Forces Command, and the Korean Navy. He also served as President of the Korea Political and Diplomatic History Association from 2021 to 2022. He received his B.A. in political science from Yonsei University, M.A. in international relations from Seoul National University and Ph.D. in international relations from the University of Tokyo.

Speakers

Patrick Cronin is the Asia-Pacific Security Chair at Hudson Institute and a Scholar in Residence at Carnegie Mellon University. Much of his career has centered on Asian security research in major research institutions, including as Senior Director of the Asia-Pacific Security Program at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS); Senior Director of the Institute for National Strategic Studies (INSS) at the National Defense University; Director of Studies at the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS); Senior Vice President and Director of Research at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS); and Director of Research at the U.S. Institute of Peace. Cronin served as the third-ranking official at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) during the George W. Bush administration. He also served as an Intelligence Officer in the U.S. Naval Reserve. A prolific author and frequent media analyst, Cronin earned his doctorate and master’s degrees in international relations from the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom and his undergraduate degree from the University of Florida.

Young-jun Kim is the Director of the Center for Northeast Asian Affairs and Center for North Korean Affairs at the Research Institute for National Security Affairs at the Korea National Defense University and Professor of the National Security College. He is a member of the National Security Advisory Board for the Republic of Korea President’s Office (the Blue House). His recent publications include Origins of the North Korean Garrison State: People’s Army and the Korean War at Routledge (2017). He is a policy advisor on North Korean issues for the National Security Office of the ROK President’s Office, the National Assembly, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), the Ministry of National Defense (MND), the Ministry of Unification, the National Intelligence Service, the Joint Chief of Staff and the ROK-US Combined Forces Command. He is the Managing Editor of Korean Journal of Nuclear Nonproliferation and Energy sponsored by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Executive Director for the Korea Nuclear Policy Society, the Korean Political and Diplomatic History Association, the Korea Political Science Association, and the Korea Defense Policy Association.

In-hyo Seol is the Director of the Center for Northeast Asian Research at the Research Institute for National Security Affairs of KNDU and Professor in the Military Strategy Division at Korea National Defense University. Since 2013, he has worked at the Division of Defense Strategy of the Korea Institute for National Defense, where he has researched U.S. defense and military strategy and the ROK-U.S. alliance and served as the head of the Current Defense Issues Analyses team from 2018 to 2021. His previous positions include serving as a visiting fellow at the U.S. National Defense University (NDU), the Director of the Defense Division of the Korean International Political Science Association, an advisor to the Joint Chiefs of Staff., a visiting researcher at the University of Maryland’s CIDCM Institute, Lecturer in the Department of Political Science at Seoul National University, and as a post-doctoral researcher at Yonsei University. He received his B.A. in international relations and Ph.D. in diplomacy from Seoul National University.

Sharon Squassoni is Research Professor at the Institute for International Science and Technology Policy, Elliott School of International Affairs, at the George Washington University. Previously, she directed the Proliferation Prevention Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and was a Senior Scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. She has specialized in nuclear nonproliferation, arms control and security policy for three decades, serving in the US government at the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, the State Department, and the Congressional Research Service. She received her B.A. from the State University of New York at Albany, M.A. in public management from the University of Maryland, and a M.A. in national security strategy from the National War College

Moderator

portrait of Yonho Kim in professional attire

Yonho Kim is an Associate Research Professor of Practice and the Associate Director of GW Institute for Korean Studies. He specializes in North Korea’s mobile telecommunications and U.S. policy towards North Korea. Kim is the author of North Korean Phone Money: Airtime Transfers as a Precursor to Mobile Payment System (2020), North Korea’s Mobile Telecommunications and Private Transportation Services in the Kim Jong-un Era (2019) and Cell Phones in North Korea: Has North Korea Entered the Telecommunications Revolution? (2014). His research findings were covered by various media outlets, including Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, Yonhap News, and Libération. Prior to joining GWIKS, he extensively interacted with the Washington policy circle on the Korean peninsula as Senior Researcher of the U.S.-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, Senior Reporter for Voice of America’s Korean Service, and Assistant Director of the Atlantic Council’s Program on Korea in Transition. He holds a B.A. and M.A. in International Relations from Seoul National University, and an M.A. in International Relations and International Economics from Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies.

10/20/2023 | Korea Policy Forum, The Covid-19 Pandemic and Digital Human Rights in North Korea

October 12, 2023November 10, 2023Archived Events, Korea Policy ForumLeave a Comment

Korea Policy Forum

The Covid-19 Pandemic and Digital Human Rights in North Korea

Friday, October 20, 2023

10:00 AM – 11:30 AM EDT

Hybrid Event

George Washington University, Elliott School for International Affairs 1957 E ST NW, Washington DC
Lindner Family Commons, Room 602

Virtual via Zoom

Event Description

During the Covid-19 pandemic, digital communications became more essential worldwide than ever for maintaining social distance. This necessity prompted North Korea to intensify its digital surveillance and monitoring efforts. Pyongyang implemented the Antireactionary Thought Law to prohibit “the creation, distribution, and consumption of any content aimed at breaking down our system.” Capitalizing on the pandemic, North Korea also heightened its efforts to crack down on phone calls on Chinese mobile telecom networks in the border area. This crackdown resulted in a significant decrease in the flow of information to and from North Korea, as well as a reduction in the amount of money transferred from North Korean defectors to their families remaining in North Korea.

The GW Institute for Korean Studies and East Asian National Resource Center cordially invite you to join us for an insightful event. The program will feature a keynote speech by Ambassador Julie Turner, Special Envoy on North Korea Human Rights Issues. The discussion will delve into topics such as North Korea‘s Anti-Reactionary Thought Law, digital surveillance and monitoring, cell phone usage, and information inflow during the pandemic.

Event Agenda

See the Event Program

09/13/2023 | Korea Policy Forum, Trilateral Strategic Cooperation Beyond the Security on the Korean Peninsula

August 31, 2023October 4, 2023Archived Events, Korea Policy ForumLeave a Comment

Korea Policy Forum

Trilateral Strategic Cooperation Beyond the Security on the Korean Peninsula

Wednesday, September 13, 2023

4:00 PM – 5:00 PM EDT

Hybrid Event

George Washington University, Elliott School for International Affairs 1957 E ST NW, Washington DC
Lindner Family Commons, Room 602

Virtual via Zoom

See the Event Program

At the Camp David Summit on August 18th, U.S. President Joe Biden, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, and Japanese Prime Minster Fumio Kishida agreed to upgrade their relationship to a level of strategic cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region that is not confined solely to the Korean peninsula. This new trilateral cooperation focuses not only on coping with security threats from North Korea but also on enhancing security alertness against disruptive powers in the Indo-Pacific region. Promoting peace and stability in the region by co-defending a rules-based international order stands at the core of the spirit of this trilateral strategic cooperation. Furthermore, this trilateral cooperation encompasses not only defense issues but also a diverse array of issues including economic security, supply chain soundness, technological development, health, and climate change. Working together to deal with these future challenges represents a new comprehensive strategic partnership between the three countries. The GW Institute for Korean Studies and East Asian National Resource Center invite you to join us for this special lecture which will highlight newly-unfolding opportunities and challenges related to enhanced strategic cooperation among the U.S., South Korea, and Japan.

Speaker

portrait of Jisoo Kim in professional attire

CHEOL HEE PARK has been the Chancellor of the Korea National Diplomatic Academy (KNDA) since March 31, 2023. He has also served as a Professor at the Graduate School of International Studies (GSIS) at Seoul National University since 2004. Previously, he was Director of Institute for Japanese Studies (2012-2016), Dean of the GSIS (2016-2018), and Director of the Institute of International Affairs (2019-2023) at Seoul National University. He also served as President of the Korean Association for Contemporary Japanese Studies in 2017. Before joining the faculty at Seoul National University in 2004, he was an Assistant Professor at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS) in Japan between 1999 and 2002 and at the Institute for Foreign Affairs and National Security (IFANS) between 2002 and 2004. He has also served as a Visiting Professor at Columbia University, the University of Tokyo, Keio University, and Nankai University. In 2022, he served as a senior staff member on the Subcommittee on Foreign Relations and Security of the Presidential Transition Committee. In his personal capacity, Dr. Park has worked as a board member at several think tanks, including the Asan Institute for Policy Studies, Sejong Institute, East Asia Foundation, and Maureen and Mike Mansfield Foundation. He also served as a Non-Resident Senior Research Fellow at the Atlantic Council. Dr. Park is also a prolific author and he wrote a column in the Tokyo Shimbun from 2012 to 2021. He has written a number of columns in Chosun Ilbo, Joongang Ilbo, Munhwa Ilbo, Maeil Business Newspaper, and Seoul Shinmun. Dr. Park has written a number of books and articles in Korean, English, and Japanese, including a book titled LDP Politics and the Transformation of Postwar Japanese Regime (Seoul National University Press, 2011). Dr. Park received his B.A. and M.A. in Political Science from Seoul National University and has a Ph.D. from Columbia University.

Moderator

JISOO M. KIM is Korea Foundation Associate Professor of History, International Affairs, and East Asian Languages and Literatures at George Washington University. She is Founding Director of the GW Institute for Korean Studies (2017-Present) and Founding Co-Director of the East Asia National Resource Center (2018-Present). She also serves as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Korean Studies. She specializes in gender, sexuality, law, emotions, and affect in Korean history. She is the author of The Emotions of Justice: Gender, Status, and Legal Performance in Chosŏn Korea (University of Washington Press, 2016), which was awarded the 2017 James Palais Prize of the Association for Asian Studies. She is also the co-editor of The Great East Asian War and the Birth of the Korean Nation by JaHyun Kim Haboush (Columbia University Press, 2016). She is currently working on a book project tentatively entitled Criminalization of Intimacy: Adultery Law and the Making of Monogamous Marriage in Korea. She received her M.A., M.Phil., and Ph.D. in East Asian Languages and Cultures from Columbia University.

05/02/2023 | Korea Policy Forum, Assessing the Biden-Yoon Summit: 70-Year Alliance and New Thinking

April 19, 2023October 4, 2023Archived Events, Korea Policy ForumLeave a Comment

Korea Policy Forum

Assessing the Biden-Yoon Summit:

70-Year Alliance and New Thinking

Tuesday, May 2, 2023

09:00 AM – 10:30 AM EDT

10:00 PM – 11:30 PM KST

Virtual via Zoom

Program & Profiles

U.S. President Joe Biden and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol will have their meeting at the White House on April 26. While commemorating the 70th Anniversary of the US-ROK alliance this year, the two leaders will explore a path to strengthen and expand the decades-old alliance based on new thinking on the strategic environment that the allies face. Three leading experts from the U.S. and South Korea, respectively, will be joining us to discuss their analyses of the results of the summit meeting. The GW Institute for Korean Studies, the East Asia National Resource Center, and the U.S-China Policy Institute at Ajou University invite you to join us for an engaging discussion on this important topic.

Event Agenda

03/08/2023 | Korea Policy Forum, South Korea’s Nuclear Armament Debate

February 27, 2023March 13, 2023Archived Events, Korea Policy ForumLeave a Comment

Korea Policy Forum

South Korea’s Nuclear Armament Debate

Wednesday, March 8, 2023

10:00 AM – 11:30 AM EDT

Hybrid Event

Elliott School of International Affairs, George Washington University (Room 505)

1957 E Street Northwest Room 505 Washington, DC 20052

Virtual via Zoom

See the Event Program

North Korea’s recent advanced missile tests and hostile statements that include threats of preemptive nuclear attacks against South Korea have fueled a debate among South Koreans about new military options to address the growing threat from the North. One noticeable development is that South Korea’s nuclear armament, a topic that used to be a taboo for decades, is increasingly drawing attention as an option that should be on the table. One could dismiss this as a tide of “nuclear populism” that could be subdued by reassuring and strengthening U.S. extended deterrence against the North Korean threat. However, it is also true that this traditionally unthinkable option is being seriously examined by more politicians and experts in South Korea than in the past. Two leading experts from the U.S. and South Korea, respectively, will be joining us to discuss their views of South Korea’s nuclear armament debate. The GW Institute for Korean Studies and the East Asia National Resource Center invite you to join us for an engaging discussion on this important topic.

Speakers

Young-Jun Kim is a Professor of the National Security College at the Korea National Defense University (KNDU) and a visiting scholar of the Elliott School of International Affairs of the George Washington University. He has served as a member of Central Committee of the Presidential Peaceful Unification Advisory Board, a member of National Security Advisory Board for the Republic of Korea President’s Office, a member of advisory board for the Department of Unification, the National Assembly, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of National Defense, the Joint Chief of Staff and the National Intelligence Service. His recent publications include Origins of the North Korean Garrison State: People’s Army and the Korean War (2017). He is a member of the ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Commander’s Strategic Shaping Board (CSSB) and the former International Senior Research Fellow at the U.S. Army’s Foreign Military Studies Office (FMSO) at Fort Leavenworth. He is a managing editor of journal “The Korean Journal of Nuclear Nonproliferation and Energy” sponsored by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the General-Director for the Korea Nuclear Policy Society and Korea Defense Policy Association. As Korean security expert, he has appeared on the FOX TV News, CBS TV News, BBC TV News, the Wall Street Journal, the National Interest, WION News TV, Al Zazeera New TV, Kyodo Tongshin and other Korean and international media.

Sang-Hyun Lee is the President of the Sejong Institute in Korea. He also serves as President of the Korea Nuclear Policy Society (KNPS). He was a research fellow at the Korean Institute for International Studies (1987-88), the Korea Institute for Defense Analysis (1988-90), and a policy advisor for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of National Unification, and the Ministry of National Defense. He served as Director-General for Policy Planning, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) from May 2011 to April 2013. He is a member of the Asia-Pacific Leadership Network (APLN) for Nuclear Nonproliferation and Disarmament and the Korea-US Nuclear Policy Leadership Initiative (NPLI). He was a visiting scholar at the Institute for
Development and Security (ISDP) in Stockholm, Sweden and the Stimson Center in Washington DC. His main research interests include international politics and security, Korea-U.S. relations, inter-Korean relations, nuclear security and nonproliferation, and East Asian security issues. His recent publications include: Trump Administration’s Nuclear Policy: Implications for Global Nuclear Energy and North Korean Nuclear Issue (2019), Trump Administration’s National Security Policy and Its Implications for Global Order and Korean Peninsula (2018), Trump Administration and ROK-US Relations (2017, co-authored), and North Korea under Kim Jong-un: Evaluating Past Five Years (2017, co-authored). He received his B.A. and M.A. from Seoul National University and Ph.D. from the Department of Political Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1999.

Ankit Panda is the Stanton Senior Fellow in the Nuclear Policy Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. An expert on the Asia-Pacific region, his research interests range nuclear strategy, arms control, missile defense, nonproliferation, emerging technologies, and U.S. extended deterrence. He is the author of Kim Jong Un and the Bomb: Survival and Deterrence in North Korea (Hurst Publishers/Oxford University Press, 2020). Panda was previously an adjunct senior fellow in the Defense Posture Project at the Federation of American Scientists (FAS) and a member of the 2019 FAS International Study Group on North Korea Policy. He has consulted for the United Nations in New York and Geneva on nonproliferation and disarmament matters, and has testified on security topics before the U.S.Senate Armed Services Committee and the congressionally chartered U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission. Panda was a Korea Society Kim Koo Fellow, a German Marshall Fund Young Strategist, an International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Shangri-La Dialogue Young Leader, and a Carnegie Council on Ethics in International Affairs New Leader. He has worked at the Council on Foreign Relations and the Liechtenstein Institute on Self-Determination at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs.

Jenny Town is a Senior Fellow at the Stimson Center and the Director of Stimson’s 38 North Program. Her expertise is in NorthKorea,U.S.-DPRK relations, the U.S.-ROK alliance and Northeast Asian regional security. She was named one of Worth Magazine’s “Groundbreakers 2020: 50 Women Changing the World” and one of Fast Company’s Most Creative People in Business in 2019 for her role in co- founding and managing the 38 North website, which provides policy and technical analysis on North Korea. Ms. Town is also an expert reviewer for Freedom House’s Freedom in the World Index, where she previously worked on the Human Rights in North Korea Project; an Associate Fellow at the Foreign Policy Institute at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), a Member of the National Committee on North Korea, and an Associate Member of the Council of Korean Americans. She serves on the Editorial Board for Inkstick, an online foreign policy journal for emerging scholars. From 2008- 2018, Ms. Town served as the Assistant Director of the U.S.-Korea Institute at SAIS. She holds a BA in East Asian Studies and International Relations from Westmar University and a Master of International Affairs from Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs.

Moderator

02/21/2023 | Korea Policy Forum, Realistic and Pragmatic Approach for Denuclearization and Peace on the Korean Peninsula

January 27, 2023February 22, 2023Archived Events, Korea Policy ForumLeave a Comment

Korea Policy Forum

Realistic and Pragmatic Approach for Denuclearization and Peace on the Korean Peninsula

Tuesday, February 21, 2023

2:00 PM – 3:30 PM EDT

Hybrid Event

George Washington University, Elliott School for International Affairs 1957 E ST NW, Washington DC
Lindner Family Commons, Room 602

Virtual via Zoom

**Former Prime Minster Lee will be giving his main remarks in English. Consecutive interpretation from Korean to English will be provided during the Q&A session**

See the Event Program

Although nearly 30 years have now passed since the first North Korean nuclear crisis in 1993, the international community has yet to find a permanent solution leading towards the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula. Despite years of negotiations, agreements, and sanctions, North Korea has continued to develop its nuclear weapons program, leading to significant tensions on the Korean peninsula. In his lecture, Nakyon Lee, former prime minister of the Republic of Korea, will offer his insights into why these past measures have ultimately been unsuccessful. Former Prime Minister Lee will then provide his own recommendations for what steps South Korea, the United States, and other major players can take to finally achieve denuclearization and lasting peace on the Korean peninsula.

Speaker

NAKYON LEE is a former prime minister of the Republic of Korea, who served under the Moon Jae-in administration. He graduated from Seoul National University with a degree in law and became a journalist at Dong-a Ilbo. After 21 years as a journalist, he entered politics and served five terms as a member of the National Assembly. During hisfourth term in 2014, he became the governor of Jeollanam-do Province until President Moon nominated Lee as his first prime minister in 2017. He was also elected as the chairperson of the Democratic Party of Korea in 2020. During his years in public affairs, he has focused on both domestic and international affairs of South Korea. As prime minister, he was responsible for overall domestic issues, including the safety of the citizens and society. He was a member of the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee at the National Assembly, in which he worked towards a peaceful inter-Korean relationship. He currently serves as a Visiting Scholar at the GW Institute for Korean Studies, where his research focuses on the peacebuilding process on the Korean peninsula.

Introductory Remarks

ALYSSA AYRES is Dean of the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University. Ayres is a foreign policy practitioner and award-winning author with senior experience in the government, nonprofit, and private sectors. From 2013 to 2021, she was senior fellow for India, Pakistan, and South Asia at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), where she remains an adjunct senior fellow. Her work focuses primarily on India’s role in the world and on U.S. relations with South Asia in the larger Indo-Pacific. Her book about India’s rise on the world stage, Our Time Has Come: How India is Making Its Place in the World, was published in 2018. Ayres is also interested in the emergence of subnational engagement in foreign policy, particularly the growth of international city networks, and her current book project (working title, Bright Lights, Biggest Cities: The Urban Challenge to India’s Future, under contract with Oxford University Press) examines India’s urban transformation and its international implications. From 2010 to 2013, Ayres served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia. She received an AB from Harvard College and an MA and PhD from the University of Chicago.

Moderator

JISOO M. KIM is the Korea Foundation Associate Professor of History, International Affairs, and East Asian Languages and Literatures. She currently serves as the Director of the Institute for Korean Studies and the Co-Director of the East Asia National Resource Center at GW. She also serves as the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Korean Studies. She is a specialist in gender, law, and emotions in Korean history. Her broader research interests include gender and sexuality, crime and justice, forensic medicine, literary representations of the law, history of emotions, vernacular, and gender writing. She is the author of The Emotions of Justice: Gender, Status, and Legal Performance in Chosŏn Korea (University of Washington Press, 2015), which was awarded the 2017 James Palais Prize of the Association for Asian Studies. She is also the co-editor of The Great East Asian War and the Birth of the Korean Nation by JaHyun Kim Haboush (Columbia University Press, 2016). She is currently working on a book project tentatively entitled Sexual Desire, Crime, and Gendered Subjects: A History of Adultery Law in Korea. She received her M.A., M.Phil., and Ph.D. in East Asian Languages and Cultures from Columbia University.

11/14/2022 | Korea Policy Forum, The U.S.-ROK Alliance at 70

November 10, 2022November 17, 2022Archived Events, Korea Policy ForumLeave a Comment

Korea Policy Forum

The Alliance at Seventy:

Towards a Global Comprehensive

Strategic Alliance in an Era of Uncertainty

Monday, November 14, 2022

3:00 PM – 4:00 PM EST

Hybrid Event

In Person at

Elliott School for International Affairs

1957 E St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20052

State Room (7th Floor)

Virtual via Zoom

The Alliance at Seventy — Towards a Global Comprehensive Strategic Alliance in an Era of Uncertainty

The ROK-U.S. alliance marks its 70th anniversary next year and has successfully maintained peace and security in Northeast Asia over the last seven decades. However, the increasingly volatile security and economic environment in the region requires a strengthening of the alliance’s role and function. In an era of such uncertainty when supply resilience, U.S.-China strategic competition, and other global issues fill the daily discourse, how has the alliance worked to adapt itself for these new challenges?

At their first summit in May 2022, President Yoon Suk-yeol and President Joe Biden reaffirmed their commitment to a “global comprehensive strategic alliance” to jointly contribute to peace, security, and prosperity in the region and around the globe, based on the shared values of the two allies. This forum will serve as a venue to discuss a new and enhanced role for the Republic of Korea in global affairs, including climate change, rules-based order, and the global supply chain. It will also review recent developments in North Korea and seek the best way for the alliance to defend against the North’s increasing nuclear and missile capabilities.

Speakers

Speaker: Ambassador Taeyong Cho (Left) has been the Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to the United States of America since June 2022. Ambassador Cho, a career diplomat for almost four decades, joined the Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1979. During his foreign service, his primary focuses were on North Korea’s nuclear affairs and the ROK-U.S. alliance, serving as both Director-General for North Korean Nuclear Affairs and later as Director-General for North American Affairs. At different times he was the Special Advisor to the Foreign Minister as well as a senior official in the Office of the President.

His previous foreign assignments include the United Nations, the United States, and Thailand. From 2007-2009, he served as Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to the Republic of Ireland. After a two-year period as Chief of Protocol in Seoul, he became an ambassador again, this time to the Commonwealth of Australia. Following his mission in Canberra, Ambassador Cho served in a number of different senior leadership positions in the country’s national security apparatus from 2013-2017. He served as Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs from 2013-2014, before becoming First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs. He later served as First Deputy Director to the President in the Office of National Security from 2015-2017. In May 2020, Ambassador Cho became a member of the 21st National Assembly of the Republic of Korea. There, he was Chair of the International Committee and Vice Chair of the Policy Committee of the People Power Party.

Ambassador Cho graduated from Seoul National University with a BA in political science and completed the Foreign Service Programme from University of Oxford. He was a visiting scholar at Keio University in Japan (2017-2018) and a visiting Professor of the Graduate School of International Studies at Yonsei University in Seoul (2019).

Moderator: Alyssa Ayres (Right) is Dean of the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University. Ayres is a foreign policy practitioner and award-winning author with senior experience in the government, nonprofit, and private sectors. From 2013 to 2021, she was senior fellow for India, Pakistan, and South Asia at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), where she remains an adjunct senior fellow. Her work focuses primarily on India’s role in the world and on U.S. relations with South Asia in the larger Indo-Pacific. Her book about India’s rise on the world stage, Our Time Has Come: How India is Making Its Place in the World, was published in 2018. Ayres is also interested in the emergence of subnational engagement in foreign policy, particularly the growth of international city networks, and her current book project (working title, Bright Lights, Biggest Cities: The Urban Challenge to India’s Future, under contract with Oxford University Press) examines India’s urban transformation and its international implications. From 2010 to 2013, Ayres served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia. She received an AB from Harvard College and an MA and PhD from the University of Chicago.

See the Event Program