Program Related Publication Feeds

May 2016 JoongAng Ilbo-CSIS Forum Luncheon Address: The Honorable Wendy R. Sherman

alim — Wed, 04 May 2016 00:00:00 -0400

The CSIS Korea Chair will be featuring a series of Korea Platforms with remarks from the distinguished speakers at the annual JoongAng Ilbo-CSIS Forum took place in Washington D.C. on May 3. The second in the series is the featured luncheon address by the Honorable Wendy R. Sherman, Senior Counselor, Albright Stonebridge Group, and Former Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs, U.S.

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2016 JoongAng Ilbo-CSIS Forum Welcoming Remarks: Ambassador Hong Seok-Hyun

slee — Wed, 04 May 2016 00:00:00 -0400

The CSIS Korea Chair will be featuring a series of Korea Platforms with remarks from the distinguished speakers at the annual JoongAng Ilbo-CSIS Forum took place in Washington D.C. on May 3. The third in the series is the welcoming remarks by Ambassador Hong Seok-Hyun, Chairman and CEO of the JoongAng Media Network.

Ambassador Hong Seok-Hyun

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Assistant Secretary of State Russel Keynote Remarks at the JoongAng-CSIS Forum 2016

mdumond — Tue, 03 May 2016 00:00:00 -0400

The CSIS Korea Chair will be featuring a series of Korea Platforms with remarks from the distinguished speakers at the annual JoongAng Ilbo-CSIS Forum took place in Washington D.C. on May 3, 2016. The first in the series is keynote address by the Honorable Daniel Russel, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, U.S. Department of State.

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CSIS Hosts Track 1.5 U.S.-ROK-China Trilateral Dialogue

alim — Fri, 22 Apr 2016 00:00:00 -0400

The Center for Strategic and International Studies hosted a Track 1.5 dialogue regarding U.S.-ROK-China cooperation and coordination on the Korean Peninsula.

The partner institutions were the Korean National Diplomatic Academy (KNDA) and the China Institute of International Studies (CIIS).

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Implications of South Korean Elections: Economic Stasis at Home, National Defense Abroad

alim — Thu, 14 Apr 2016 00:00:00 -0400

The Saenuri Party’s poor showing in the April 13 General Elections for the 20th National Assembly will be read as a sound defeat for the ruling party and for the Park administration. The results come as a surprise and were inconsistent with the pre-election polling. The 105 seats won by Saenuri falls far short of the 150-160 range expected for the ruling party (122 for Saenuri

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The Honorable Tom Malinowski: Special Address at the Center for Strategic and International Studies

alim — Fri, 19 Feb 2016 00:00:00 -0500

A special address delivered by The Honorable Tom Malinowski at the “North Korea: The Human Rights and Security Nexus” conference held in the Center for Strategic and International Studies, as released by the U.S. Department of State.

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Better Allies Through Knowledge

alim — Thu, 17 Dec 2015 00:00:00 -0500

“Americans don’t understand Korea.” That is often the refrain from Koreans about the United States, their closest ally for over 60 years. It’s not without some truth.

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Labor Reform in South Korea: Creating a Place Where There are Many Paths to Success

mdumond — Tue, 24 Nov 2015 00:00:00 -0500

On the evening of the day earlier this month when South Korean high school seniors took their college entrance exam, a friend in Seoul posted a note on Facebook about the shame he was feeling. He wrote that his son, who is in his early 20s several years out of high school, took the test for a third time and, once again, the result disappointed.

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Her Excellency President Park Geun-hye: Statesmen’s Forum Address at the Center for Strategic and International Studies

mdumond — Thu, 15 Oct 2015 00:00:00 -0400

A CSIS Statesmen’s Forum Address by Her Excellency President Park Geun-hye as released by the Embassy of the Republic of Korea to the United States.

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Decoding the U.S.-South Korea Civil Nuclear Cooperation Agreement

mdumond — Wed, 30 Sep 2015 00:00:00 -0400

On June 15, the United States and South Korea signed a successor agreement to their 1974 civil nuclear cooperation accord. Updating the existing agreement took over four years of challenging negotiations complicated by Seoul’s demands for the right to enrich uranium and reprocess (or pyroprocess) spent nuclear fuel to which Washington objected.

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Do U.S.-ROK Military Exercises Provoke DPRK?

alim — Mon, 17 Aug 2015 00:00:00 -0400

On August 17, the annual U.S.-ROK military exercise Ulchi Freedom Guardian (UFG) will begin in South Korea for ten days. UFG is a computerized command-and-control exercise focused on simulating how the U.S. and the ROK would defend against a North Korean invasion, and normally involves 50,000 ROK troops, and 30,000 U.S. soldiers.

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Korea-Japan Relations, 50 Years In: Demystifying the Paradox of Cyclical Tensions and Rapprochment

slee — Thu, 13 Aug 2015 00:00:00 -0400

In advance of the August 15 anniversary of the end of the Pacific War, issues of history and historical memory have become high politics in Asia.

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Theories on Why North Korea Rejects the World

alim — Wed, 29 Jul 2015 00:00:00 -0400

North Korea last week rejected South Korea’s invitation to attend the Seoul Defense Dialogue in September, denigrating the talks as “puerile.” In the same breath, it also rejected a proposal by National Assembly speaker Chung Ui-hwa for a meeting with his northern counterpart to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the Korean Peninsula on Aug. 15.

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Nearly Halfway Through Her Term, Park's Chance to Improve on Lee's Economic Record is at Risk

mdumond — Wed, 01 Jul 2015 00:00:00 -0400

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What We Learn From Edwin Reischauer About the U.S. Role in Japan-Korea Relations

mdumond — Mon, 29 Jun 2015 00:00:00 -0400

With foreign minister Yun Byung-se’s visit to Tokyo and courtesy call on Prime Minister Abe Shinzo this week, it looks as though the feud between Japan and the Republic of Korea that has stymied bilateral relations may be coming to a close.

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By the Numbers: Fear Over MERS Impacts South Korean Economy

alim — Wed, 24 Jun 2015 00:00:00 -0400

South Korean president Park Geun-hye postponed her scheduled trip to the United States on June 10 to supervise containment of an outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS). The spread of MERS in South Korea started with a 68-year-old man who was diagnosed with the virus on May 20 after his business trip to the Middle East.

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MERS in Korea: Why This Outbreak Can Be Stopped Soon

mdumond — Sun, 07 Jun 2015 00:00:00 -0400

The Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) is caused by a mildly contagious virus that can cause a life-threatening pneumonia typically in persons with any of four pre-existing medical conditions: lung disease, kidney disease, immunodeficiency, or diabetes.

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The Asia-Pacific Order After 70 Years

mdumond — Wed, 06 May 2015 00:00:00 -0400

I have extraordinary respect for the accomplishments of the Republic of Korea. Students of development cite Korea as a great success story, rising from the rubble of war to build a globally competitive economy, earn high living standards, and establish a vibrant, free democracy.

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JoongAng Ilbo-CSIS Forum Welcoming Remarks

mdumond — Wed, 06 May 2015 00:00:00 -0400

I am honored and pleased to welcome you all to the 5th JoongAng Ilbo-CSIS conference. At the outset, please let me thank Dr. Hong Seok-hyun and his very impressive colleagues for all their help in organizing this conference. It is a genuine partnership.

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JoongAng Ilbo-CSIS Forum Opening Remarks

mdumond — Wed, 06 May 2015 00:00:00 -0400

This is the fifth year we are hosting the JoongAng Ilbo-CSIS Forum and each year, we are seeing an increasing level of interest from not just opinion leaders in the academia and government but the younger generation with a genuine interest in the geopolitics surrounding the Korean Peninsula.

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Exactly How Provocative are U.S.-ROK Military Exercises?

mdumond — Tue, 24 Mar 2015 00:00:00 -0400

Between 6:31AM to 6:41 AM on Sunday, March 2, North Korea fired off two short-range ballistic missiles (SRBMs) from the western port city of Nampo into the East Sea. A few hours after the Scud-Cs landed into the sea, the U.S. and the ROK began their annual joint military exercises Key Resolve (March 2 – 13) and Foal Eagle (March 2 – April 24).

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A Stronger Partnership: Recommendations for U.S.-ROK Civil Nuclear Cooperation and the 123 Negotiations

mdumond — Tue, 17 Mar 2015 00:00:00 -0400

For the past four years, the CSIS Korea Chair has organized a small project on U.S.-ROK alliance issues, including the 123 negotiations. Stakeholder meetings took place at CSIS offices in DC, involving experts, U.S. officials, and former officials that aimed at understanding the negotiating positions of both sides and the potential “win-sets” that were available.

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Assessing the 2015 Spring Exercise Season: Trying Hard to Stick to Business

mdumond — Mon, 16 Mar 2015 00:00:00 -0400

The first week of March marked the start of Key Resolve (March 2-13) and Foal Eagle (March 2-April 24) which – together with Ulchi Freedom Guardian in the late summer – are the largest U.S.-Republic of Korea (ROK) joint military exercises held in South Korea each year.

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The ROK-U.S. Alliance as a Linchpin to a Lasting Peace in Northeast Asia

mdumond — Thu, 05 Mar 2015 00:00:00 -0500

Ladies and gentlemen, after we celebrate this historic year, Korea and the U.S. should begin the next step: making necessary preparations, based on the strong bilateral alliance, to ensure that we can celebrate 100 years of peace in Northeast Asia in 30 years time and welcome the centennial anniversary on a firmly established framework for enduring peace in the region.

As Park Geun-hye Faces Economic Worries in Pivotal Year, Her Government Bores in on an Unglamorous Problem

mdumond — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 00:00:00 -0500

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Debunking Six Myths About North Korean Sanctions

mdumond — Mon, 22 Dec 2014 00:00:00 -0500

Myth 1. The U.S. and other nations face a policy choice between sanctions or engagement

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The Organization of Cyber Operations in North Korea

mdumond — Thu, 18 Dec 2014 00:00:00 -0500

Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) announced last night a cancellation of the upcoming release of “The Interview.” U.S. government officials also informally acknowledged that North Korea played a central role in the cyber attacks against Sony. The act against Sony is the first of its kind by North Korea, in terms of both the target and the sophistication of the hack.

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What Do We Know About Past North Korean Cyber Attacks and their Capabilities?

mdumond — Fri, 12 Dec 2014 00:00:00 -0500

*The recent cyber-attack on Sony Pictures Entertainment and the subsequent allegations of North Korea’s involvement in the attack led many to wonder about North Korea’s capability to conduct disruptive and/or destructive operations in cyberspace.At the time of this writing, investigation is ongoing and the evidences revealed so far is not conclusive enough to successfully attribute the attack to North Korea.

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ROK-U.S. Cooperation in Preparing for Korean Unification

mdumond — Wed, 10 Dec 2014 00:00:00 -0500

For the last two years, the Park Geun-hye administration has consistently advanced its “trust-building process on the Korean peninsula.” The trust-building process was born from a critical retrospection of the history of inter-Korean relations.

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CSIS Korean Unification Conference Remarks

mdumond — Wed, 10 Dec 2014 00:00:00 -0500

Assistant Secretary Daniel Russel delivered the following text as a special address at the December 10, 2014 Korea Global Forum 2014: CSIS-EAI Conference on Korean Unification co-organized by Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and East Asia Institute (EAI) at CSIS in Washington, D.C. These remarks were originally published by the U.S.

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The Future of North Korea

Tue, 04 Nov 2014 00:00:00 -0500

It has been approximately three years since North Korean leader Kim Jong-un succeeded his father Kim Jong-il on December 2011. Although North Korea appears to be stabilizing at a gradual pace under the Kim Jong-un regime, unstable currents still remain as shown from frequent reshuffle of top-ranked military officers since the execution of Vice Chairman of the National Defense Commission Jang Sung-taek in December 2013.

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The Won’s Value Has Become a Crutch on Which South Korean Leaders Can Blame All Kinds of Economic Difficulty. Time to Let It Go.

mdumond — Thu, 23 Oct 2014 00:00:00 -0400

In early October, the New York Times published a story about the Obama administration’s quiet acceptance that policymakers in Europe, Japan, China and elsewhere were relying on fiscal stimulus and weak currencies to get their economies going, moves that would come at the expense of U.S.

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Keeping in Touch with the World: Why the BBC Could Give a Real Choice to North Koreans

mdumond — Mon, 22 Sep 2014 00:00:00 -0400

Everywhere I have been the BBC has been with me’, declared Aung San Suu Kyi on her 2012 visit to the UK. Speaking about her own and others’ experiences when deprived of other sources of information and communication, she insisted warmly on the lifeline the World Service radio provided, ‘because it kept me in touch with the rest of the world...

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Adapting the U.S.-Republic of Korea Alliance to Strategic Competition in Robotics

mdumond — Mon, 15 Sep 2014 00:00:00 -0400

Many aspects of the Asian security landscape are as they have been for more than a decade. China is still rising, U.S. alliances are still central to regional stability, and North Korea’s threatening rhetoric still outpaces its behavior.

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Abe’s Game Plan on North Korea

mdumond — Thu, 28 Aug 2014 00:00:00 -0400

There are situations in international politics, as there are in life, in which there are no good options, in which nothing works. Trying to deal with North Korea is a case in point. The United States has tried everything in its tool kit in an effort to come up with an effective North Korean policy.

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Five Theories of Unification

mdumond — Tue, 22 Jul 2014 00:00:00 -0400

Unification - a perennial topic of discussion among political scientists - has now become an interest of investors.

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A Messenger from Rome to the Comfort Women

mdumond — Thu, 03 Jul 2014 00:00:00 -0400

As the world prepares for ceremonies next year commemorating the 70th anniversary of the conclusion of the most horrendous war in all of human history, the time is long overdue for closure in Asia. Reconciliation was dramatically advanced over four decades ago in Europe.

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Is South Korea Striving Less Economically?

mdumond — Mon, 16 Jun 2014 00:00:00 -0400

Of the many stereotypes that are tossed around about South Korea and South Koreans, one of the most generous and true is that it’s a place and people striving and working hard.

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The Sewol Tragedy Has Also Become an Economic Disruption for South Korea

mdumond — Mon, 12 May 2014 00:00:00 -0400

For the past three months in the United States, corporate results that didn’t meet expectations and economic data that leveled or slightly slowed have all been attributed to one extraordinary event: an unusually cold and snowy winter.

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Crimea’s Demonstration Effect in Asia

mdumond — Mon, 24 Mar 2014 00:00:00 -0400

Vladimir Putin is a threat to Asia. Let me explain why. His invasion of Georgia in 2008 and now Ukraine are blatant acts of aggression.

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Moving Out of the Middle: Park Geun-hye Lays Out an Economic Agenda

slee — Mon, 24 Feb 2014 00:00:00 -0500

President Park Geun-hye in early January used her first news conference to stitch several policies she’s talked about during her first year in office into an economic agenda that, if it works, will arrest South Korea’s declining rate of growth.

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Obama Should Add Seoul to His Asia Itinerary

mdumond — Fri, 31 Jan 2014 00:00:00 -0500

President Obama has promised to rebalance U.S. foreign policy to the Asia-Pacific region.

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Unfinished Business

mdumond — Fri, 24 Jan 2014 00:00:00 -0500

Although the full itinerary of President Obama’s scheduled trip to Asia in April has not yet been formally announced, the Washington inside-the-beltway experts believe that Japan is a definite stop. A stop in the Philippines, after Typhoon Haiyan, is also likely, and then possibly Indonesia or Malaysia.

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OPCON Transition in Korea

mdumond — Mon, 16 Dec 2013 00:00:00 -0500

The Republic of Korea (ROK) and U.S. are again discussing whether to transition wartime Operational Control (OPCON) to the ROK on 1 Dec 2015. This is the third such discussion (previous ones were in 2006 and 2010).

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Korea’s Mistake on China’s ADIZ Controversy

mdumond — Mon, 02 Dec 2013 00:00:00 -0500

The Republic of Korea appropriately protested China’s November 23 announcement of the creation of the East China Sea Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) through foreign ministry and defense ministry channels last week. But there was some disturbing information that surfaced over the weekend.

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Ending a Feud Between Allies

mdumond — Fri, 15 Nov 2013 00:00:00 -0500

* A version of this op-ed appears in print on November 15, 2013, in The International New York Times. © 2013 The New York Times Company

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Testimony of Victor Cha before the UN Commission of Inquiry on North Korean Human Rights

mdumond — Thu, 07 Nov 2013 00:00:00 -0500

Mr. Chairman, as you are aware, North Korean human rights has not traditionally been a high priority in U.S. policy to the North. The primary focus has been on the security threat in two respects: 1) conventional deterrence of a second North Korean invasion; and 2) denuclearization.

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Korea-Japan Divergence

mdumond — Fri, 01 Nov 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Since South Korea in the 1960s began its now-fabled economic rise, its “Miracle on the Han,” the country’s efforts and outcomes have been compared to Japan’s.

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South Korean-Chinese Summit: A Dose of Reality

mdumond — Mon, 22 Jul 2013 00:00:00 -0400

The recently completed visit of South Korean President Park Geun-hye to China, and the red carpet treatment she received there, is widely perceived as a seminal event which could ultimately reshape diplomatic relations throughout East Asia.

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Laos Betrays "Gentlemen's Agreement" on North Korean Refugees

slee — Thu, 30 May 2013 00:00:00 -0400

Nine North Korean refugees about the age of that refugee girl – mere kids really, between the ages of fifteen and twenty-three – were recently forcibly sent to China by Laotian officials and then, accompanied by North Korean agents, flown back to Pyongyang.

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