Beyond the Denuclearization–Engagement BinarySouth Korea’s diplomacy toward North Korea has long been trapped between two familiar but insufficient choices. One is a principled but often unrealistic insistence on immediate denuclearization. The other is an engagement-oriented approach that is easily criticized
IntroductionBilateral social security agreements are essential in today’s globalized world to guarantee expatriates’ welfare, facilitate international labor mobility, and promote global cooperation. They prevent migrant workers from paying social security contributions in two countries at the same time, coordinate the
President Lee Jae-myung’s April 2026 state visit to Vietnam was framed by a rare symmetry of diplomatic timing. General Secretary To Lam had been the first state guest received by the Lee administration in Seoul; Lee, in turn, became the
The Strategic Weight of Diplomatic DiscourseIn international relations (IR), the language states use to describe their role — the frames, metaphors, and identity claims embedded in policy documents and diplomatic communications — tends to shape what they can ask for,
IntroductionAs Korea and Bulgaria mark the 36th anniversary of diplomatic relations in 2026, their bilateral ties are entering a new phase defined less by symbolism and more by converging strategic interests. What was once a relationship characterized largely by cordial
Introduction: The Geopolitics of Digital RegulationThe politics of digital regulation has become one of the clearest examples of how economics, technology, and geopolitics now overlap. What might once have looked like a technical debate over competition law, online safety, or
IntroductionThe Korean nuclear debate has been among the hidden political taboos in the Korean political agenda and inter-Korean relations for more than five decades. Yet, President Trump’s decision to re-deploy the U.S. Terminal High Attitude Area Defense (THAAD) system from
Cooperation in an Age of TensionThe Korean Peninsula today is defined by a paradox. Political and military tensions remain deeply entrenched, with inter-Korean dialogue largely frozen and security concerns once again dominating the agenda. Yet at the same time, the