[학술논문] Opening Pandora's Box: Is South Korea's Nuclearization Feasible and Desirable?

...nuclear armament debate has become prominent in contemporary South Korean politics, driven by security concerns toward North Korea's nuclear development and the credibility of U.S. extended nuclear deterrence. The Trump 2.0 Presidency has further heightened the debate, with advocates claiming strategic opportunities and necessities for South Korea's nuclear independence. This article examines the debate...

[학술논문] South Korea-United States Relations in 2025: Lee Adjusts to Trump as the U.S.-China Conflict Deepens

South Korea-U.S. relations in 2025 continued to be influenced by the deepening conflict between China and the U.S. Xi Jinping's "New Era" policies drive inter-related military and economic threats to both South Korea and the U.S. Largely in reaction, Donald Trump has intensified his first-term effort both to confront China's threats and to use trade and other policies to re-industrialize the U.S. economy...

[학술논문] SUNSHINE OVER A BARREN SOIL: THE DOMESTIC POLITICS OF ENGAGEMENT IDENTITY FORMATION IN SOUTH KOREA

...coordination problems in the ROK-U.S. alliance and domestic political cleavages in South Korea. This article assesses the rationale behind South Korea’s engagement policy, and argues that it initiated a politics of identity reformulation between Sunshine proponents and opponents. The two liberal administrations’ Sunshine policy also contributed to changes in the South’s role identity vis-a-vis North...

[학위논문] Trilateral Security Model in The ROK’s Engagement with ASEAN

...the importance of its alliance with the U.S. However, as the ROK's power grows, its perception of the threat posed by the DPRK has shifted. Additionally, amid growing concerns about U.S. intentions, the ROK has sought greater autonomy, particularly through its engagement with ASEAN. ASEAN offers the ROK opportunities for economic growth and diplomatic maneuvering. Hence, ROK's engagement with ASEAN...

[학술논문] 鳩山政権の『東アジア共同体』構想

...‘The Synergy between the Japan‐U.S. alliance and Japanese Diplomacy toward Asia’(PM Yasuo FUKUDA), and so on. These conceptions stemmed from the Japan’s basic objectives of the foreign policy, (ⅰ) the maintenance of the Japan‐U.S. alliance, (ⅱ) the quest for autonomy, (ⅲ)the development of the relations of mutual trust with Asian countries. Interestingly, PM Hatoyama’s conception of ‘East Asian Community’...

[해외] Why Japan and South Korea Won’t Go Nuclear

...Boot has argued that the increasingly uncertain credibility of the U.S. nuclear umbrella should prompt South Korea to seek its own nuclear deterrent. Their conjecture is neither surprising nor unprecedented. In the 1970s, for example, South Korea tried unsuccessfully to develop a covert nuclear program in response to concerns about U.S. abandonment. And the security environment has rarely been so uncertain...

[해외] Should Japan change its approach to North Korean denuclearization?

... alliance and deepening cooperation with South Korea, while promoting multilayered trilateral security cooperation. In recent years, Japan has intensified its cooperation with South Korea, consistent with Japan’s policy of fostering collaboration among like-minded nations to promote a free and open Indo-Pacific region. Compared to the Shinzo Abe era, the Takaichi administration places greater emphasis...

[해외] Kim’s Dangerous Liaisons: Russia, China, and the Growing North Korea Threat

...fight between North Korea and a U.S.-backed South Korea but draw in Russia and China, as well. U.S. policymakers have been hoping to offload some of the responsibility for maintaining peace on the Korean Peninsula to Seoul. But Washington has missed the fact that this task has fundamentally changed. Deterring Pyongyang now means deterring Beijing and Moscow, too, and South Korea, as capable as it is,...

[국내] 이란의 비대칭 드론전: 한·미 동맹에 주는 핵심 교훈

...challenges for U.S. and allied preparedness againstasymmetric warfare in the Indo-Pacific region. To strengthen U.S.-ROK alliance readiness, both Washington and Seoul would benefit from the recognitionthat Iran’s fielding of thousands of low-cost drones represents more than a temporary, insular trend, but rathera probable strategic shift in adversaries’warfighting calculus. In precise terms, today’s conflict...

[국내] 한·미 핵 협력의 미래: 격변하는 시기 속 정책 방향 탐색

...Seoul, the United States and South Koreawould do well to seek predictability and direction in 2026 in their broader relationship, in general, and onnuclear policy matters, in specific. From deterrence to energy, nuclear policy questions have long been centralto the broader U.S.-South Korea alliance. Predictability, unfortunately, is not the strong suit of the current U.S.administration, which behaves...