Opinion - The Korea Times

Hegemonic competition beyond new Cold War

By Kim Won-sooThe relations among nation-states are in flux. Many pundits are raising the alarm about the return of the Cold War. But this time around, the main frontier lies not between the United States and the Soviet Union, but between the United States and China, a fast-rising challenger to the U.S.-led international order.I believe their warnings are only half right. They are valid in that they highlight the new geopolitical reality of a growing rivalry between two camps, one led by the United States and the other G-7 nations, and the other by China and Russia. However, characterizing what is happening now as a Cold War redux fails fully to capture the subtle peculiarities of the new reality. The Russian invasion of Ukraine marks the first hot war initiated by a nuclear state against a non-nuclear neighbor. On the spectrum of hot war-cold war, the new geopolitical reality stands somewhere between a full-on cold war and a hot war between nuclear powers. This new reality could thus be much more unpredictable and dangerous than what we faced during the Cold War.Here are two reasons

Nov 7, 2022By Kim Won-soo

Kim Won-soo

Multilateral diplomacy: wild card with caveats for Seoul

By Kim Won-sooMultilateral diplomacy has been in full swing for the new government of South Korea since right after the inauguration of President Yoon Suk-yeol four months ago. Most recently it culminated in the United Nations summit in New York, home to the most universally multilateral institution. This fall will see the upcoming G20 summit in Indonesia and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Thailand held consecutively in mid-November.This swing, in diplomacy, was partially spurred by the revenge boom of multilateral diplomatic gatherings after the three-year lull caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. But the larger reason can be attributed to the growing recognition of the strategic value of South Korea as a swing force in the new global diplomatic chess game amid intensifying rivalries among major powers. Multilateral diplomacy is a wild card for South Korea, which is surrounded by four much bigger neighbors and one smaller but very tough neighbor. Above all, it provides South Korea with a crucial avenue through which global and regional norms and standards are mad

Oct 9, 2022By Kim Won-soo

Multilateral diplomacy: wild card with caveats for Seoul

Kim Won-soo

Korea: shrimp or safety valve between US, China?

By Kim Won-sooWorld politics is going through a great upheaval. The Russian invasion of Ukraine is the latest manifestation of the growing malaise in big power relations. At its center lies the rising rivalry between the United States and China, the world's two most powerful states and leaders of their respective blocs. Inevitably, this great upheaval poses great diplomatic challenges to the countries along the geopolitical fault line between the two. The Korean Peninsula is situated squarely on this fault line. Many foreign policy pundits continue to regard North Korea as the No. 1 challenge for South Korea. North Korea's unbridled nuclear buildup poses an existential threat to South Korea. Pyongyang's self-imposed isolation, further aggravated by international sanctions, has caused devastating hardship for its people, which could have a long-term impact on a unified Korea. These North Korean headaches will be there for many years to come as the country is intent on keeping its nuclear arsenal at any costs. I believe, however, that the far greater challenge for South Korea is to fig

Sep 12, 2022By Kim Won-soo

Korea: shrimp or safety valve between US, China?

Kim Won-soo

Wake-up call for 'Nuke Five'

By Kim Won-sooOver the last five decades, the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) has served as the bedrock for keeping the world safe from a nuclear doomsday. Now it stands on the brink of a breakdown.The 10th NPT Review Conference is finally in session after being postponed by two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The long delay might have been a blessing in disguise, as it bought more time for a compromise outcome to be worked out. Unfortunately, however, the prospects of such an outcome appear dangerously low.The NPT has long managed to keep the number of nuclear states at the single-digit level through a combination of incentives and disincentives. It is premised on the belief that “less is safer,” in terms of both the number of nuclear states (horizontal) and the quantity of nuclear weapons (vertical). The quid-pro-quo bargain between nuclear haves and have-nots was struck to limit both horizontal and vertical proliferation simultaneously. The most frequently used disincentives are international condemnation and sanctions against non-nuclear s

Aug 15, 2022By Kim Won-soo

Kim Won-soo

Why Korea should make the most of multilateralism

By Kim Won-sooThe new government of Korea is off to a hectic start with multilateral diplomacy. Last month, President Yoon Suk-yeol made a diplomatic debut at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit alongside the leaders of 30 member states, and for the first time, three other Asia-Pacific partners, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand. This attendance marks a double first: 1) the first time ever for a Korean president to attend a meeting held by an alliance group outside the Asian country's immediate regional security interests; and 2) the first overseas visit by Yoon. Last week Foreign Minister Park Jin followed suit by attending the G20 Foreign Ministers' meeting.From geopolitical and diplomatic perspectives, both gatherings are quite significant. NATO is extending its partnership with the Asia-Pacific with a clear view to check the growing Russia-China alignment. On the other hand, the G20 meeting was the first international gathering where Russia sat down with the Western leaders following its invasion of Ukraine.Korea's participation in both gatherings bodes well for

Jul 18, 2022By Kim Won-soo

Kim Won-soo

Liberal democracy under double siege

By Kim Won-sooLiberal democracy, along with the open market economy, has been the main engine of progress for humanity over the last century. Liberal democracy is not perfect, but it's the best available option that we currently have. It comprises a liberal political ideology and an elected government composed of separate branches that exercise checks and balances against each other. It has evolved over time to suit the specific socio-political context of each country.Recently, however, liberal democracy has come under siege both domestically and internationally. Now it is facing a two-pronged challenge: 1) domestically, many democracies are experiencing a surge in populism and socio-political polarization, which is chipping away at their ability to adapt to internal challenges; and 2) internationally, the growing rivalry with authoritarian governments is amplifying the internal polarization of liberal democracies and weakening their ability to respond to external challenges. Behind this double siege on liberal democracy are the following three factors. First and foremost is the grea

Jun 20, 2022By Kim Won-soo

Kim Won-soo

Welcome reboot of Korea-US alliance

By Kim Won-sooThe summit between U.S. President Joe Biden and his Korean counterpart Yoon Suk-yeol took place merely a dozen days following President Yoon's inauguration. Some may think it was a natural prelude to the Quad summit in Japan. But the symbolism attached to it cannot be overlooked. As the first stop in his very first presidential trip to Asia, there is more to President Biden's visit to Korea than meets the eye. Over the seven decades since the Korean War, the Korea-U.S. alliance has evolved significantly, reflecting both changes in international geopolitics and the rise of Korea from a war-stricken, impoverished country to one of the world's most advanced economies. I would argue the alliance has now entered a third phase: the first phase (1.0) saw South Korea significantly dependent upon the United States from 1953 to the late 1980s while the second phase (2.0) showed a more balanced partnership between the two with a particular focus on the Korean Peninsula from the 1990s until early this year. Last year's joint statement issued by former President Moon Jae-in and Pres

May 25, 2022By Kim Won-soo

Kim Won-soo

It's inequality, stupid.

By Kim Won-sooThe world stands at a tipping point. The ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine is a vivid reminder of rising insecurity in global geopolitics. The post-World War II global order led by the United States shows signs of fatigue, increasingly unable to meet the mounting challenges from both competitors and rogue players. Growing intolerance of differences and diversity undermines social cohesion within and across societies. Both insecurity and intolerance breed a sense of injustice among those who feel marginalized and discriminated against. In the shadows of these three I's (insecurity, intolerance and injustice) lurks a fourth I, inequality. Without addressing the structural causes of inequality, the vicious circle of the four I's cannot be broken. Absolute poverty is hard to endure. But relative poverty is much harder to endure as comparison trumps everything else in human judgment.Inequality is on the rise in the following three dimensions of human life. This trend, unfortunately, has aggravated under the COVID-19 pandemic over the last two years.The first is economic in

Apr 10, 2022By Kim Won-soo

Kim Won-soo

Why Ukraine matters to South Korea

By Kim Won-sooThe Russian invasion of Ukraine is an outright affront to the international norm of non-aggression. It is wreaking humanitarian havoc on a scale never seen in Europe since the end of World War II. Its impact on the global economy is devastating as Russia and Ukraine are major players in global fuel and food supply chains. Following the invasion, oil prices are spiking and food supplies to those in need in the developing world are at risk. There is no doubt that the longer the invasion lasts, the more serious the humanitarian and other socio-economic consequences will be. South Koreans are watching the volatile situation in Ukraine with a great deal of concern mostly for economic and humanitarian reasons. South Korean media has primarily highlighted those aspects of the invasion while largely disregarding the strategic side. This approach, however, is mistaken because the greatest impact will likely be felt on the strategic side. Here are three strategic considerations that require South Korea's attention. Firstly, the invasion reflects the strategic tectonic shifts occ

Mar 13, 2022By Kim Won-soo

Kim Won-soo

Korean politics for diplomacy: recipe for doom or boom?

By Kim Won-sooThe 2022 South Korean presidential election is around the corner, with less than a month to go. Korea watchers around the world are anxiously awaiting its outcome, with many apprehensive of the potential fallouts on South Korea's relations with neighboring countries. But for Koreans on both sides of the peninsula, it means much more than that ― their very survival is at stake. The main source of concern for South Korea is the recent dramatic decline in the domestic consensus over foreign policy. Since the end of the Korean War, South Korea had long enjoyed a robust domestic consensus with regards to foreign policy. This consensus remained even after its transition from an authoritarian to a democratically elected government in the late 1980s. Throughout the 1990s, South Korea's diplomatic relations flourished on the back of successful consensus-building between the military-backed majority party and two liberal opposition parties. During this period, South Korea diligently pursued “Nordpolitik,” normalizing relations with China as well as Russia and other fo

Feb 13, 2022By Kim Won-soo

Kim Won-soo

Read more

Hegemonic competition beyond new Cold War

Multilateral diplomacy: wild card with caveats for Seoul

Korea: shrimp or safety valve between US, China?

Wake-up call for 'Nuke Five'

Why Korea should make the most of multilateralism

Liberal democracy under double siege

Welcome reboot of Korea-US alliance

It's inequality, stupid.

Why Ukraine matters to South Korea

Korean politics for diplomacy: recipe for doom or boom?

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