Malaysia

South Korea

Economics

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Military & Security

Politics

Science & Technology

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol signed a strategic partnership emphasizing cooperation in defense and critical minerals with a roadmap to complete a free trade agreement by 2025, Yonhap News Agency reported on Nov. 25.

South Korea, Malaysia: Countries Upgrade Ties to Strategic Partnership

On Nov. 15, the Seoul Central District Court charged the leader of the opposition Democratic Party, Lee Jae-myung, with violating the Public Official Election Act by lying in media interviews and in a parliamentary audit about corruption allegations against him ahead of the 2022 presidential elections, Yonhap News Agency reported Nov. 15.

South Korea: Charges Against Opposition Leader Risk Party Split, Policy Lag

United States

North Korea

A joint statement from the annual U.S.-South Korea Security Consultative Meeting did not mention as a goal the complete denuclearization of North Korea, the first such omission since 2015, Yonhap News Agency reported on Oct. 31.

South Korea, U.S.: Defense Meeting Drops North Korea Denuclearization Goal 

Japan

South Korea's Defense Intelligence Agency discovered evidence that North Korea had deployed a transporter erector launcher to an area from which Pyongyang could attempt a long-range, low-trajectory launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile to test atmospheric reentry capabilities, Yonhap News Agency reported on Oct. 30.

South Korea: North Korea Could Test Nuke, ICBM in 2024

Ukraine

Lawmakers from South Korea's opposition Democratic Party, or DP, threatened in a meeting of the party's leadership council to impeach the defense minister if President Yoon Suk Yeol sends military personnel to Ukraine without parliamentary consent, Yonhap News Agency reported on Oct. 30.

South Korea: Opposition Threatens Impeachment if South Korean Troops Sent to Ukraine

Russia

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

After a meeting of South Korea's presidential National Security Council, Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo warned of phased response measures in proportion to the degree of North Korea-Russia military cooperation in the Russia-Ukraine war, Yonhap News Agency reported on Oct. 22.

South Korea, Ukraine: Seoul Considers Sending Arms, Intelligence Officials to Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that North Korea was assisting Russia with military personnel and workers in Russian factories, citing Ukrainian intelligence, The Wall Street Journal reported on Oct. 16.

North Korea, Ukraine: North Korean Troops Supporting Russia's War Against Ukraine, Zelensky Says

China

U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said if he were in office now, South Korea would be paying $10 billion per year for the maintenance of United States Forces Korea, or USFK, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 15.

South Korea, U.S.: Trump Cost-Sharing Push Could Sully Regional Cooperation With Seoul

Assessments

People gather in front of the main gate of the National Assembly in Seoul, South Korea on Dec. 4, 2024, after President Yoon Suk Yeol declared emergency martial law. 

The president's brief gambit will likely stall his agenda and eventually lead to his departure, giving rise to an opposition more skeptical of U.S. and Japanese defense ties.

South Korea's Yoon Quickly Scraps Martial Law Order, but the Political Damage Has Been Done

Columns

On Geopolitics

South Korean marines participate in joint exercises with U.S. forces Sept. 2 in Pohang, South Korea. Japan and South Korea set the blueprint for how militaries must contend with stiff competition for human resources.

Japan and South Korea set the blueprint for how militaries must contend with stiff competition for human resources.

Demographic Decline and Military Manpower: Understanding the Shifting Role of People in Conflict

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol attends the third session of the G-20 Leaders' Meeting in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Nov. 19, 2024.

Multiple political disputes could see Yoon start stretching the limits of his power as his term winds down, pushing anti-union activity and arms exports.

In South Korea, Political Clashes Limit the President's Room To Maneuver

People watch a television screen showing a news broadcast with file footage of North Korea's artillery firing, at a railway station in Seoul on Jan. 6, 2024.

With both sides threatening overwhelming retaliation and having greater capabilities to make good on those threats, provocations along the North-South border now carry a greater risk of erupting into military clashes.

The Rising Risk of Military Clashes on the Korean Peninsula

Snapshots

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Ethiopia

Ghana

Kenya

Malawi

Tanzania

Zambia

Zimbabwe

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol (R) speaks as Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Ghazouani (L), chair of the African Union, listens during a joint press conference following the 2024 Korea-Africa Summit in Goyang, South Korea, on June 4, 2024.

Energy

A recent summit highlights South Korea's commitment to expanding its role in Africa as Yoon looks to strengthen his country's technological future and geopolitical influence.

In South Korea, Yoon's Desire for Supply Chains and Prestige Points to Africa

(From left to right) Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and Chinese Premier Li Qiang attend a joint press conference during a trilateral summit on May 27, 2024, in Seoul, South Korea. 

Barring major economic and political shifts, cooperation between the three countries is unlikely to notably improve, as Seoul and Tokyo's strategic interests will remain largely at odds with Beijing's.

Reviewing the China-Japan-South Korea Summit: A Long Shot Effort To Ease Tensions

Taiwan

Global Elections

While President Biden would be expected to continue to build and strengthen alliances with America's key allies in the northern Asian region, the reelection of President Trump could spur those same allies to look beyond the U.S. for their physical and economic security.

The 2024 U.S. Presidential Elections, Northern Asia and Geopolitical Risk: What to Expect

South Africa

Israel

Palestinian Territories

United Kingdom

Supporters of the African National Congress (ANC) party dance, sing and chant slogans during a campaign march on May 24, 2024, in Johannesburg, South Africa. 

Israel-Hamas Conflict

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

The Weekly Rundown: South Africa's General Election, Israel Resumes Hostage Talks With Hamas

Natsumi Sakai (C) of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan poses with others after receiving news that she won the by-election for the Tokyo No. 15 district seat for the lower house, in Tokyo, Japan, on April 28, 2024.

Recent by-elections reveal that a slush fund scandal is continuing to take its toll on Japan's ruling party, but Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is set to remain in power, for now.

By-Election Losses Shake Japan's Ruling Party, but Kishida Stays the Course

Australia

Fiji

Indonesia

New Zealand

Philippines

Singapore

Vietnam

India

A 3D rendering of Southeast Asia from space at night with city lights showing Southeast Asian cities in Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia.

U.S.-China Relations

In the Asia-Pacific, countries are increasingly pursuing complex networks of political, economic and defense ties as part of a burgeoning "multi-alignment" strategy that seeks to avoid U.S.-China strategic competition.

Examining 'Multi-Alignment' in the Asia-Pacific

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. 

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

Poland

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

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

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, Malaysia: Countries Upgrade Ties to Strategic Partnership

South Korea: Charges Against Opposition Leader Risk Party Split, Policy Lag

South Korea, U.S.: Defense Meeting Drops North Korea Denuclearization Goal

South Korea: North Korea Could Test Nuke, ICBM in 2024

South Korea: Opposition Threatens Impeachment if South Korean Troops Sent to Ukraine

South Korea, Ukraine: Seoul Considers Sending Arms, Intelligence Officials to Ukraine

North Korea, Ukraine: North Korean Troops Supporting Russia's War Against Ukraine, Zelensky Says

South Korea, U.S.: Trump Cost-Sharing Push Could Sully Regional Cooperation With Seoul

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