South Korea

Economics

Politics

South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo announced that the government had agreed to allow 32 major medical universities to reduce state-mandated hikes to medical school enrollment quotas by up to 50% in 2025, but they must still comply with the full scope of quota hikes (2,000 additional student slots per year) by 2026, Reuters reported on April 19.

South Korea: Government Reaches Agreement With Striking Doctors

United States

Energy

Environment, Science & Technology

Science & Technology

The U.S. Biden administration will likely grant a request by South Korea's photovoltaic cell manufacturer Qcells to reverse a two-year-old exemption from new tariffs on bifacial solar panel imports, Reuters reported on April 17.

U.S.: Washington To Restore Tariffs on Bifacial Solar Panels

Military & Security

South Korea's opposition parties, centered around the liberal Democratic Party, won 189 seats in the 300-seat National Assembly during the April 10 legislative elections, Reuters reported the next day.

South Korea: Legislative Election Impedes President's Pro-Business Policy Goals

Canada

Australia

China

Japan

New Zealand

United Kingdom

Cyber

The United States, the United Kingdom and Australia are considering adding New Zealand, South Korea, Canada and Japan to AUKUS Pillar II, Yonhap News Agency reported on April 10.

AUKUS: Grouping Considers Doubling in Size Along Pillar II

Taiwan

India

Chinese government-linked disinformation networks are increasingly incorporating artificial intelligence tools to influence election audiences in Taiwan and the United States, according to a new Microsoft report published on April 4.

Cyberspace: Chinese Influence Operations Escalate Use of AI Tools

North Korea

Russia

South Korea’s coast guard detained an unflagged cargo ship with a Chinese captain and Chinese and Indonesian crew and docked it in Busan, South Korea, Yonhap News Agency reported on April 3.

South Korea: Coast Guard Detains Ship Suspected of North Korea-Russia Trade

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol held an emergency economic meeting during which he pledged support for consumers and businesses, Yonhap News Agency reported on March 27.

South Korea: Support for Households and SMEs a Last Ditch Effort to Buy Votes

Germany

Finland

Poland

Ireland

Finland, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Poland and South Korea joined the U.S.-led international coalition against the proliferation and dissemination of spyware, according to a joint statement released by the White House on March 18. 

Cyberspace: Additional Countries Join International Anti-Spyware Coalition

Assessments

U.S. President Joe Biden (right) and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida shake hands following a joint press conference in the Rose Garden at the White House on April 10, 2024, in Washington, D.C. 

U.S.-China Relations

Greater U.S.-Japan defense cooperation will exacerbate China's sense of entrapment, furthering Beijing's partnerships with authoritarian regimes and its long-term preparations for a Taiwan conflict.

Japan-U.S. Relationship Serves as a Model for Indo-Pacific Security, a Bad Omen for China

Iran

Israel

Philippines

People attend an April 5, 2024, funeral procession for seven Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps members killed in an Israeli strike in Syria.

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended RANE articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: The Threat of Iranian Retaliation Against Israel, Polish Local Elections

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol gives a speech on the government budget at the National Assembly in Seoul on Oct. 31, 2023.

A conservative victory in the April 10 ballot would accelerate pro-business policies and boost the country's arms industry, while a liberal victory would perpetuate pro-labor and green transition policies.

Legislative Elections Will Prove Pivotal for South Korea's Lame Duck President

Venezuela

Egypt

Europe

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on March 14, 2024, at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

The Weekly Rundown: Dueling U.S. and Chinese Diplomacy, a European Council Summit

Snapshots

Doctors shout slogans during a rally to protest against the government's plan to raise the annual enrollment quota at medical schools, near the Presidential Office in Seoul on Feb. 25, 2024.

The president will try to capitalize on voters' frustration with the ongoing strike to secure a conservative majority in the National Assembly, which would enable him to more avidly pursue his pro-business agenda and deterrence strategy against North Korea.

In South Korea, a Doctors' Strike Could Play in Yoon's Favor Ahead of Legislative Elections

Columns

On Geopolitics

Burkina Faso

Mali

Niger

South Africa

Argentina

Mexico

Palestinian Territories

Turkey

Hong Kong SAR, China

France

Spain

Italy

Armenia

Ukraine

Azerbaijan

Bangladesh

Pakistan

In this scorecard, we take a critical look at our successes and slip-ups in forecasting geopolitical events over the past year.

Grading Our 2023 Annual Forecast

Marshall Islands

Solomon Islands

Maldives

EU Commissioner for Trade Valdis Dombrovskis speaks March 16, 2023, in Brussels.

The Weekly Rundown: The U.S.-Pacific Islands Forum Summit, China-Japan-South Korea Talks

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi speaks at the opening ceremony of the International Forum for Trilateral Cooperation that commemorated the 20th anniversary of trilateral cooperation among China, South Korea and Japan, in Beijing, China, on May 10, 2019. 

A trilateral summit may increase economic cooperation between China, Japan and South Korea, but their security interests continue to diverge.

China, Japan and South Korea Will Resume Trilateral Talks, but Diplomatic Hurdles Remain

Labor union members from the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions participate in a rally in protest of the government's labor policies on May 31, 2023, in Seoul, South Korea. 

Yoon's anti-union policies may lead to political and economic gains, but unrest may also rise.

The Risks and Rewards of Yoon's Anti-Union Stance in South Korea

U.S. President Joe Biden boards a helicopter outside the White House in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 17, 2023, as he departs for Camp David in Maryland, where he'll host Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol for a trilateral summit. 

The Aug. 18 meeting will yield defense and intelligence arrangements aimed at anchoring the trilateral relationship in a permanent structure that cannot easily be undone by future administrations. 

What to Expect From the U.S.-Japan-South Korea Summit

Media

Podcasts

What forces are at play in shaping South Korea's strategic geopolitical relationships?

Applied Geopolitics: South Korea's Response to Shifting Geopolitical Balances 

Chile

Saudi Arabia

Russian soldiers march in Moscow on May 4, 2023, during a rehearsal for the Victory Day military parade on May 9.

The Weekly Rundown: Russia Marks Victory Day, Japan's Leader Visits South Korea

The Republic of Korea, also called South Korea, occupies the southern half of a peninsula that juts out of the Asian mainland toward Japan. The country shares its only land border with North Korea, which it also borders in the Yellow and East seas. It shares maritime borders with Japan to the east and China to the west. South Koreas primary geographic challenges are overcoming internal fractures to maintain cohesion, and securing its maritime sphere and its southwest lowland pockets from its more powerful neighbors.    The ancient kingdoms of Baekje and Silla occupied the distinct geographic pockets of the southern peninsula, standing in contrast to a more unified space where North Korea now sits. The Taebaek mountains run along much of South Korea's eastern coast, largely protecting the country from invasion by sea from this direction. These mountain ranges provide a level of protection to the peninsula's most vulnerable feature: a north-south corridor of lowlands and hills along the west coast. This coast (as well as much of South Korea's southern coastline) is protected from easy landing by countless islands, mudflats and tidal rips.     However, the Nakdong River valley at Pusan offers a point of incursion to would-be invaders. From here, they can pass over the lower elevations of the Sobaek Mountains and onward to the western core. This has been the gateway for those seeking to control the peninsula, from the failed 16th century invasions of Japanese Daimyō Toyotomi Hideyoshi to the Japanese empire's later efforts in the 19th century. A North Korean invasion in 1950 (repelled by U.N. forces defending the Pusan Perimeter) highlights another key vulnerability for South Korea: the potential for incursions from the north via the western coastal strip. To hedge against aggression from all directions, South Korea is focused on securing its maritime space, particularly in the south and west. The country has prioritized its possession of Jeju Island in the Jeju Strait and has in the past held claims to Tsushima Island. Disputes with China over the Socotra Rock in the Yellow Sea and with Japan over Dokdo in the East Sea are also important elements of South Korea's overall maritime strategy.     The Korean Peninsula's historic policy of isolation was one way of remaining out of the crosshairs of its neighbors, but it has also aligned itself with rival powers throughout its history. Most recently, South Korea has used a third party — the United States — to maintain balance against neighbors that threaten it from sea and land. 

SITUATION REPORTS

South Korea: Government Reaches Agreement With Striking Doctors

U.S.: Washington To Restore Tariffs on Bifacial Solar Panels

South Korea: Legislative Election Impedes President's Pro-Business Policy Goals

AUKUS: Grouping Considers Doubling in Size Along Pillar II

Cyberspace: Chinese Influence Operations Escalate Use of AI Tools

South Korea: Coast Guard Detains Ship Suspected of North Korea-Russia Trade

South Korea: Support for Households and SMEs a Last Ditch Effort to Buy Votes

Cyberspace: Additional Countries Join International Anti-Spyware Coalition

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