Dec 09,2019 Country Reports

Country Report: South Korea (November 2019)

Through the fall, Seoul’s relationship with Tokyo has been at its nadir, but relations with both Pyongyang and Washington have also been deeply troubled. While conservative and progressive articles and commentators have differed in their recommendations, neither found much basis for hope. Under pressure, concessions have been made and perceived as responses to desperation. Fear […]

Kim Kimberly
CVID , GSOMIA , Mount Geumgang , Pyongyang Declaration , Special Measures Agreement , Trump-Kim summit , US-ROK alliance
Oct 07,2019 Country Reports

Country Report: South Korea (September 2019)

August saw a series of missile provocations from North Korea in the midst of growing tension between South Korea and Japan; the hostility against one another reached its peak as Seoul eventually announced its decision to end a military intelligence-sharing agreement, the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA), with Tokyo and later filed a […]

Kim Kimberly
GSOMIA , John Bolton , peace economy , Trump-Kim summit , UN General Assembly , US-China trade war , US-ROK alliance
Jun 04,2019 Country Reports

Country Report: South Korea (May 2019)

Since the diplomatic collapse in Hanoi, talks between the US and North Korea have remained at an impasse throughout April and May, while President Moon Jae-in kept seeking ways to play his role as a middleman and bring the two sides back to the negotiating table. One such attempt was another meeting with President Donald […]

Kim Kimberly
Hanoi summit , Kaesong Industrial Complex , maximum pressure , Mount Geumgang , Six-Party Talks
Apr 02,2019 Country Reports

Country Report: South Korea (March 2019)

Second US-DPRK Summit (Feb. 27-28) US President Donald Trump met with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un again on February 27-28 in Vietnam, following their first historic summit in Singapore last year. Given that the first meeting fell short of expectations, ending with an ambiguous joint statement that did not specify the definition of denuclearization or […]

Kim Kimberly
Foal Eagle , Hanoi summit , Kaesong Industrial Complex , Key Resolve , Mount Geumgang , Panmunjom Declaration , Pyongyang summit , Yongbyon
Nov 26,2018 Country Reports

Country Report: South Korea (November 2018)

The 73rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly President Moon Jae-in’s New York itinerary was all about sharing the meeting results from the Pyongyang summit he had held with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un: Moon met with President Donald Trump on September 24 to deliver Kim’s off-script messages; then he spoke in front of […]

Kim Kimberly
Asia-Europe Meeting , comfort women , Panmunjom Declaration , Pope Francis , Pyongyang Declaration , UN General Assembly , US-DPRK summit
Sep 27,2018 Country Reports

Country Report: South Korea (September 2018)

The second half of the summer saw the build-up to the third summit of Moon Jae-in and Kim Jong-un as well as more wide-ranging diplomacy in North-South relations in the background. One occasion was the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) foreign ministers’ meeting in Singapore. Another was the closely-watched presidential speech on August 15. Finally, as […]

Kim Kimberly
ASEAN Regional Forum , inter-Korean summit , Kaesong Industrial Complex , Mount Geumgang , Panmunjom Declaration , Pyongyang Declaration