South Korea News

The Daily Signal reports on South Korea with conservative commentary on the U.S.-ROK military alliance, North Korean missile threats, denuclearization negotiations, troop deployments, economic partnership, and Seoul’s frontline position defending against communist aggression.
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    • News

    Collaborating on Shipbuilding Central to Trump’s Meeting With South Korean President

    President Donald Trump met with South Korea’s new president Monday and discussed collaborating on military and commercial shipbuilding in light of Communist China’s dominance in the industry. The White House summit was President Lee Jae Myung’s first meeting with Trump since he was elected president in June.     “I believe that there is a renaissance…
    Virginia Allen
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    • News

    North Korea Rejects Talks With South Korea’s New Liberal President

    The sister of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un has rejected diplomatic talks with South Korea’s new liberal leader.   “We clarify once again the official stand that no matter what policy is adopted and whatever proposal is made in Seoul, we have no interest in it and there is neither the reason to meet…
    Virginia Allen
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    • Opinion

    Poland’s Purchases From South Korea Set Example

    Among U.S. allies in Europe, Poland has been the strongest advocate for expanding European defense forces since the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Continuing to take this mission seriously, Poland has turned to South Korea as a defense partner, particularly in the acquisition of K2 tanks.  Such collaboration serves as an example for other U.S….
    Cameryn Jones
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    • Opinion

    Why South Korea Is Key to US Shipbuilding Strategy

    The U.S. Navy desperately needs help. Today, it maintains fewer than 300 ships—a staggering fall from the 1,200 it boasted at the end of World War II. The shipbuilding industry is in similar lackluster condition, having been in decline for decades. Currently, the Navy operates only four shipyards, with all others having closed. Those that…
    Naomi Park
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    • News

    South Korean Leader’s Brief, but Ill-Advised Flirtation With Martial Law

    South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol abruptly declared martial law on Tuesday, blaming “anti-state forces” planning to overthrow the government. Yoon had previously complained of media and opposition groups pushing false information to subvert society, but gave no indication he would take such drastic measures. Yoon’s action reversed decades of South Korean democratization from its…
    Bruce Klingner
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    • Opinion

    Time to Forge Greater Private Sector Partnerships to Strengthen US-Japan-South Korea Cooperation

    The U.S. hosted a summit at Camp David with Japan and South Korea just over a year ago, so this is a timely opportunity to reflect on the strategic significance and imperative of making trilateral cooperation more pragmatic, especially in enhancing economic security and freedom partnerships. The summit on Aug. 18, 2023, paved a path…
    Anthony B. Kim
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    • Opinion

    North Korea’s Bizarre Balloon Stratagem: Sending Trash, Feces to South Korea

    Just when longtime North Korea watchers thought they had seen it all, Pyongyang managed to surprise them. The world has seemingly become inured to North Korea’s steadily escalating nuclear and missile threats and extensive human rights atrocities. Launches of new, more deadly ICBMs no longer merit coverage in U.S. media. But Pyongyang has come up with a new way…
    Bruce Klingner
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    • Opinion

    Election Loss for South Korea’s Ruling Party Unlikely to Affect Pro-US Security Policies

    South Korea’s liberal opposition parties scored a decisive victory in the recent National Assembly elections, routing the ruling conservative party of President Yoon Suk Yeol. The election earlier this month was seen as a referendum on Yoon’s first two years in office and the results risk turning him into a lame duck for the rest…
    Bruce Klingner
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    • Opinion

    A Not-So-Secret US-South Korea Action Plan

    Policymakers in Washington and Seoul rightly suspect that by the 70th  anniversary of Korean-American relations, the agenda for the two nations is way more than just wrapping up the aftermath of the Korean War. No two countries have benefited more from the world’s free and open spaces than South Korea and the United States. This…
    James Carafano
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    • Opinion

    Time for US, Japan to Make Case for Adding South Korea to Group of 7 Nations

    As the global economy faces growing, complex challenges on multiple fronts, the Group of Seven leading industrialized nations needs to be reinvigorated to remain credible and relevant. South Korea is a fitting pivot for the much-needed regeneration of the G-7. Recognizing that necessity, jointly advocating the expansion of the G-7 to the Group of Eight…
    Anthony B. Kim
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    • Opinion

    Why US Should Roll Out Red Carpet for South Korean President

    South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s visit to Washington in late April will provide an opportunity for the U.S. to affirm and strengthen its bilateral relationship with an important ally. The Biden administration should receive Yoon with all the trappings of a state visit, the highest-level visit by a head of state, and Congress should…
    Bruce Klingner
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    • Opinion

    US, South Korea to Resume Military Exercises

    Washington and Seoul are poised to resume large-scale combined military exercises for the first time in four years. Doing so will repair the degradation to allied deterrence and defense capabilities wrought by years of canceled or reduced military training. While the U.S. and South Korea constrained their militaries, North Korea continued its own military exercises,…
    Bruce Klingner
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    • Opinion

    Conserving, Advancing Freedom Is Central to South Korea’s Alliance With US

    In his Aug. 15 Independence Day speech marking the 77th anniversary of the end of Japanese colonial rule over the Korean Peninsula, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol underscored the fundamental importance of freedom to his country. “As we celebrate the 77th Liberation Day, we must remind ourselves of the historic significance of this independence…
    Anthony B. Kim
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    • Opinion

    US Ally South Korea Is NATO’s Trusted, Capable Partner

    The U.S.-South Korean alliance has been the linchpin of peace and prosperity in Northeast Asia for generations. Now, that pivotal partnership is about to be elevated to a next level, particularly through South Korea’s greater and more strategic engagement with NATO.  At the invitation of the organization, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol will attend…
    Anthony B. Kim
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    • Opinion

    Time to Elevate US-South Korea Partnership With Strategic Refinement

    Forging greater pragmatic cooperation between willing allies necessitates timely, forward-looking strategic clarity in terms of paving an elevated trajectory of the alliance. That’s why the upcoming May 21 summit between President Joe Biden and South Korea’s recently inaugurated President Yoon Suk Yeol matters. Biden, on his first presidential trip to Indo-Pacific, will make his first…
    Anthony B. Kim
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    • Opinion

    US-South Korea Free Trade Agreement Turns 10. It Is Key to Further Elevating Both Countries’ Alliance.

    The free trade and investment agreement between the U.S. and South Korea will hit the 10-year mark on March 15. With bilateral trade having expanded nearly 70% over the past decade, the agreement between the two long-time allies deserves renewed support and greater strategic utilization for years to come.  The U.S.-South Korea free trade agreement…
    Anthony B. Kim
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    • Opinion

    South Korea’s New President Is Welcome Development for US Policy on North Korea, China

    South Korea concluded a bitterly divisive presidential campaign season Wednesday with the election of Yoon Suk Yeol. Both he and his opponent, Lee Jae-myung, engaged in a battle of mudslinging and accusations, making this an acrimonious campaign. Both candidates were highly unfavorable, making this a true “election of the undesirables.” The contest was unusual since,…
    Bruce Klingner
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    • Opinion

    North and South Korea Just Test-Fired Missiles. Here’s What You Need to Know.

    North Korea followed its weekend test launch of long-range cruise missiles by firing two ballistic missiles into the Sea of Japan on Wednesday. Shortly afterward, South Korea conducted another successful test of its submarine-launched ballistic missile. The nearly concurrent launches simply reflect continued missile development by both Koreas, but will likely be interpreted as responsive…
    Bruce Klingner
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    • Opinion

    G-7 Summit Cannot Overcome Strained South Korean-Japanese Relations

    The Biden administration’s efforts to use the G-7 summit meeting to soothe relations between South Korea and Japan were unsuccessful because of long-standing sensitive historic issues and sovereignty disputes between America’s Asian allies. Washington had encouraged a bilateral meeting between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga. South Korea’s foreign ministry…
    Bruce Klingner
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    • Opinion

    US-South Korea Summit Papers Over Policy Differences

    President Joe Biden’s meeting with South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in was highly successful in underscoring the strong bilateral relationship, shared values and objectives, and the importance of South Korea not only to the United States but on the world stage. The lengthy joint statement had something for everybody, reflecting both a compendium of agreements and…
    Bruce Klingner
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