South Korea’s foreign policy has long been shaped by a structural tension that no administration has fully resolved. The tension is known as the imperative of maintaining the US-ROK alliance as the foundation of national security, and the equally pressing
IntroductionOn 6 July 2026, at HMC Dockyard in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced that Germany’s ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) had been named the preferred bidder for the Canadian Patrol Submarine Project (CPSP), a program valued at up
North Korea’s withdrawal from the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of nuclear weapons in 2003 and its first nuclear test in 2006 fundamentally changed the security environment on the Korean Peninsula. Since then, diplomatic negotiations, international sanctions and political pressure have
Ambassador Karl-Olof Andersson has served as Sweden’s Ambassador to the Republic of Korea since August 2024. He holds degrees in business and languages from Lund University and in international studies and political science from Johns Hopkins University. He also served
Ambassador Eva Marie Russek has served as Austria’s Ambassador to Korea since September 2025. She studied law in Graz, worked as a research assistant at Rutgers University Law School (USA), and graduated from the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna. She began
IntroductionAs global energy systems undergo rapid transformation driven by decarbonization pressures, technological innovation, and shifting geopolitical alignments, energy-producing states are increasingly redefining their strategies to remain competitive. In this evolving landscape, Azerbaijan has begun to move beyond its traditional role
The Strategic Significance of the Korea–EU SummitThe reality that yesterday’s allies are turning into today’s adversarial partners is emerging due to the reorganisation of the international order. In this environment, it is necessary to establish relations with existing partners that
Introduction: Beyond the Arms Export StoryKorea’s defense industry has spent the past three years moving from being a notable arms exporter to becoming a structural participant in the production networks of major allies. The shift is visible in headline contracts.
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
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,