The Korean Odyssey

  * On December 16, 2025, South Korean civil society organizations, including the Citizens’ Peace Forum, held a press conference in front of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Seoul, opposing the ‘ROK–U.S. North Korea Policy Coordination Consultative Body.’ ⓒ Citizens’ Peace Forum Il Young Jeong Senior Research Fellow_Institute of Social Science_Sogang University “Ah … the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is making the Korean Peninsula issue even more complicated.” That was my first reaction upon reading the news that South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs was pushing for high-level talks with the United States to coordinate policy toward North Korea. In the end, the Ministry of Unification — the government body primarily responsible for North Korea policy — announced it would not participate in the talks, citing the Foreign Ministry’s overreach. Former unification ministers and civil society organizations also opposed the launch of the consultative body, warning that it would become...

  * On July 31, 2025, South Korea's Foreign Minister, Park Hyun, is shaking hands with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio during the Korea-U.S. Foreign Ministers' Meeting in the United States. ⓒ Ministry of Foreign Affairs Il Young Jeong Senior Research Fellow_Institute of Social Science_Sogang University South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has sparked controversy by pushing to establish a regular policy coordination meeting with the United States on North Korea policy. At a regular press briefing on December 9, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Park Il stated that the government is working  the convening of a “regular ROK – U.S. policy coordination meeting (TF)” to discuss “overall North Korea policy, including measures for engagement with North Korea.” The Lee Jae-myung government has declared itself a government of popular sovereignty and has emphasized a North Korea policy based on the sovereignty of the people. Yet the Ministry of Foreign Affairs — rather than the mini...

* Citizens Discussing Peace and Unification on the Korean Peninsula Il Young Jeong Senior Research Fellow_Institute of Social Science_Sogang University With the inauguration of the Lee Jae-myung administration in South Korea, the Ministry of Unification has been rebuilt. One of the most notable aspects of the recent organizational restructuring of the Ministry is the large-scale introduction of social dialogue mechanisms and public – private cooperation bodies. This article seeks to propose key considerations that should be addressed in Social Dialogue 2.0 on the Korean Peninsula being pursued by the South Korean government and civil society.   The Rise of Social Dialogue During the 22nd presidential election, President Lee Jae-myung pledged to promote the “activation of social dialogue” on North Korea and unification policy. Minister of Unification Chung Dong-young has also emphasized a “people-sovereign North Korea policy,” stating that citizens — the sovereign power holders ...