What is the relationship between political generation and foreign policy? By examining Korea’s sudden and sharp foreign policy change during the Roh Moo-hyun government, 2003–2007, in this article I show that when a political generation with distinctive emotions and preferences rises in power, it can have a significant impact on foreign policy. Despite the alliance ties with the United States and North Korea’s continuing development of nuclear weapons, the Roh government sought to redefine relations with the former, while deepening economic and political engagement with the latter to an unprecedented extent. I argue that the rise of what I call the “democratization generation” in Korean politics is the key to understanding why Korea’s foreign policy changed in this period. The findings of the paper suggest that a salient political generation is indeed an important domestic source of foreign policy preferences and change.
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