25 Oct 2024
South Korea-Indonesia: How a viral moment could have real-world consequences
Warm feelings and popular culture can only go so far.
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23 Sep 2024
Power in Asia: Outliers and curiosities
Some findings of the latest Asia Power Index controvert conventional wisdom. -
16 Sep 2024
North Korean elite defectors on the rise?
South Korea must be careful not to politicise high-level defections from the North. -
16 Aug 2024
Farewell Fumio Kishida – regional foundations are stronger for your legacy
Too much focus on personality politics can obscure the enduring common interests between countries. -
22 Jul 2024
Japan, South Korea and United States: Let’s hope for a robust, lasting pact
The new framework for security cooperation will have important consequences for the region – if it survives domestic politics among the partners. -
2 Jul 2024
Putin goes to Pyongyang: Should we be worried?
The renewed marriage of convenience between Russia and North Korea has global implications. -
1 Jul 2024
South Korea’s nuclear ambition holds a place in the national consciousness
It might seem illogical to the rest of the world, but a sense of vulnerability has a pervasive pull on policy. -
28 Jun 2024
Putin in Asia: Setting a cat among the pigeons
Ever a pragmatist, the Russian leader’s calculated alignments are purely based on needs and interests. -
19 Jun 2024
Koreas policy: Sorting fact with fiction
You can’t understand a country without knowing the stories people like to invent. -
30 May 2024
With balloons in the sky, North Korea keeps its feet on the ground
Just mind not to step in the smelly message. -
2 May 2024
Economic diplomacy: It’s nostalgists vs strategists
As a new Treasurer claims a geo-economic legacy in industrial policy, his predecessor’s once shiny G20 triumph has been dumped. -
15 Apr 2024
Is South Korea’s Indo‑Pacific Strategy a diplomatic lame duck?
After President Yoon’s election defeat, a change in foreign policy is unlikely, but momentum will vanish. -
21 Mar 2024
Economic diplomacy: Politics rules in Korean envoy row
From Seoul to Washington, “captain’s pick” ambassadors are being embroiled by unexpected domestic political tensions. -
6 Mar 2024
A summit between Japan and North Korea? About time
With Kim Jong-un extending an olive branch to Tokyo, high-level talks may be on the cards, but roadblocks remain. -
28 Feb 2024
Can South Korea become a global pivotal state?
With non-permanent member status on the UN Security Council, Seoul has a long list of goals to help make its mark. -
5 Dec 2023
Should Trump win, will Kim Jong-un pick up the phone?
Circumstances have greatly changed since the “bromance” that captivated the world. -
28 Nov 2023
The extra bad news behind the latest Korean break-down
Suspending the 2018 inter-Korean military accord not only fuels mistrust but shows neither side is looking for an off-ramp. -
6 Nov 2023
How vulnerable is South Korea to a “Hamas-style” attack from the North?
History makes Seoul’s concern understandable – but the best way to deter surprise is through engagement. -
21 Sep 2023
The Camp David Agreement’s shallow foundations
A new trilateral security arrangement could precipitate unintended and deleterious consequences for the US–Korea alliance. -
23 Aug 2023
The curious tales of defectors to North Korea
Why would anyone choose to live in or return to a repressive hermit state? The answers are complex and include regret. -
17 Aug 2023
Bridging the divide: the significance of the US-South Korea-Japan trilateral
The Biden administration sees the upcoming summit as historic – China and North Korea may also, for different reasons. -
24 Jul 2023
Forget Washington, Pyongyang’s most important target has always been Beijing
Kim Jong-un’s charm offensive with Donald Trump may have yielded few results. Not so his efforts with Xi Jinping. -
15 Jun 2023
It’s time for South Korea to refocus on multilateral diplomacy
A new national security strategy stresses values-based diplomacy, but that can’t be at the expense of talking to China. -
24 May 2023
North Korea/South Korea: Who’s threatening who?
The prospect of using nuclear weapons to coerce behaviour has limits. -
2 May 2023
Choosing openness in the international economy
As the region seeks to rebound from a global economic downturn, the free flow of goods and services is key. -
28 Apr 2023
South Korea can’t afford to be a Wally with water
And neither can the rest of the world. -
27 Apr 2023
Will US reassurance be enough to halt South Korea’s nuclear ambition?
Seoul has won extra support from Washington, but not for the goal of global disarmament. -
4 Apr 2023
North Korea keeps building more powerful weapons, with no end in sight
Diplomacy is desperately needed to avoid an irreversible escalation in nuclear capability and the excuse to use it. -
14 Mar 2023
Japan and South Korea: a logical but uneasy alignment
Is a compensation deal to right colonial-era wrongs part of a strategic shift towards rapprochement? -
17 Feb 2023
Indonesia’s own subs conundrum
A stalled deal with South Korea means both countries must overcome defence cooperation challenges to look to the future. -
14 Feb 2023
Why North Korea is denying its involvement in Russia’s war in Ukraine
Pyongyang appears to be a reluctant participant in Putin’s brutal offensive in Eastern Europe. -
18 Jan 2023
“If the problem becomes more serious”: South Korea talks going nuclear
The high stakes on Korean Peninsula have quickly become even more acute in 2023. -
11 Nov 2022
North Korea: unpredictably predictable
The rationale behind Pyongyang’s provocative missile launches may not be as menacing as it appears. -
4 Nov 2022
Solutions to the North Korea issue no longer include denuclearisation
A minimalist approach based on arms control, risk reduction and deterrence is what’s needed right now on the Peninsula. -
25 Oct 2022
The Korean Peninsula still poses major risks
Escalating tensions and vicious cycles. We’ve heard this story before. That doesn’t make the situation less dangerous. -
5 Oct 2022
Hot button issue: North Korea’s bold new nuclear stance
Regional leaders would do well to focus on engagement with Pyongyang after missile launches set a dangerous precedent. -
8 Sep 2022
Can Seoul and Tokyo mend ties?
Defence talks this week are a good sign. But a lot of history stands in the way of cooperation, even over North Korea. -
29 Aug 2022
The merits of transactionalism
Seeking deeper relationships doesn’t always best serve the national interest. -
5 Aug 2022
Koreas: The hidden risk of the “kill chain”
South Korea's threat to pre-emptively decapitate the leadership in Pyongyang may drag the United States into a conflict. -
28 Jun 2022
Contingency plans: South Korea and cross-Strait security
Seoul’s new administration faces critical choices over Taiwan and its relationships with Washington and Beijing. -
13 Apr 2022
Bellicose or bluster? How South Koreans see the North’s nuclear threat
The policy of a new president in Seoul depends not only on Pyongyang but also South Korean public perceptions. -
30 Mar 2022
Why now? The timing of North Korea’s ICBM test
History has an alarming habit of repeating on the Korean peninsula. -
22 Mar 2022
Waiting for North Korea to escalate
With Pyongyang ramping up its missile testing, it’s unclear whether they’re looking for a deal or a provocation. -
11 Mar 2022
From Moon to Yoon: will the Korean peninsula see fire and fury return?
South Korea’s election result again proves the adage that governments lose more than oppositions win. -
9 Feb 2022
A foreign policy cheat sheet for South Korea’s presidential election
Liberal and conservative candidates bring distinct traits to office. But after polling day, the shackles could come off. -
17 Jan 2022
South Korea’s embrace of Australia goes beyond China
Seoul confronts a panoply of regional challenges – not least that from the other big trading partner in Asia. -
10 Jan 2022
Koreas: A tale of two Olympics
Moon Jae-in won’t finish his presidency with the podium finish he’d dreamed of four years ago. -
16 Dec 2021
Australia’s “China” blinders on South Korea
By focusing on the elephant, Australia risks misunderstanding the room. -
2 Dec 2021
Honouring the dead on the path to Korean peace
Recovering troop remains and negotiating denuclearisation are vital to end-of-war declarations on the Korean peninsula. -
19 Nov 2021
Time for South Korea to abandon the “middle power” moniker
In the end, it’s not a term that helps people to understand policy and policy choices.