Skip to main content

Best click

South Korea’s New Government Must Realize Participatory Democracy in Its North Korea and Unification Policy

* The Newly Inaugurated Lee Jae-myung Administration,  @ Office of the President of the Republic of Korea Il Young Jeong Research Professor_Institute of Social Science_Sogang University With the inauguration of the Lee Jae-myung administration in South Korea, the propaganda broadcasts that once echoed across the inter-Korean border have come to a halt. This is perhaps one of the most dramatic signs of the change brought about by the shift in power. Encouraged by North Korea’s active response, the South Korean government is now cautiously exploring ways to resume inter-Korean dialogue. Recently, the Lee administration launched the National Policy Planning Committee, chaired by Lee Han-joo, and has begun the process of formulating policy tasks across various sectors. This article proposes steps the government should take to restore procedural democracy and realize participatory democracy in the formulation and implementation of its North Korea and unification policies.   An ...

A 'Proper Distance' Is Needed in Inter-Korean Relations

* The Bridge of No Return in the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)   @iStock Il Young Jeong Research Professor_Institute of Social Science_Sogang University On December 3 of last year, political turmoil erupted in South Korea following the declaration of martial law by former President Yoon Suk-yeol. This crisis ultimately concluded with Yoon's impeachment. Now, South Korea is preparing for an early presidential election. The people’s courageous stand against the coup attempt has safeguarded democracy, and their choice at the ballot box is just one month away.   The daunting array of domestic and international challenges ahead leaves no room for complacency. South Korea now faces a presidential election amid what may be the gravest national crisis in its modern history. This article proposes policy alternatives concerning the Korean Peninsula that the new government should consider. In particular, it offers suggestions for how inter-Korean relations should be managed going forwa...

Why the U.S. and China Need to Work Together for Peace on the Korean Peninsula

  * We need to come up with a new type of multilateral cooperation in which the U.S. and China can cooperate to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue together. ⓒ iStock Il Young Jeong Research Professor_Institute of Social Sciences_Sogang University Recently, the atmosphere surrounding Korea and its neighbors has been quite unusual. Rather than an overarching trend influencing events in the regions, an array of different sources and trends are coming together to effect change in the region. In this article, I will analyze the situation in Northeast Asia from the perspective of the Korean Peninsula and discuss how best to respond.   The quiet resurrection of the Northern Triangle(North Korea-China-Russia) and the Southern Triangle(South Korea-U.S.-Japan) In the early 1990s, with the wind-down of the Cold War, the Roh Tae-woo administration in South Korea effectively broke down the confrontational structure on the peninsula(the so-called Northern Triangle vs. Southern trian...