Korea - EIAS

South Korea after the National Assembly Election: How Yoon’s defeat could change domestic and foreign politics

On 10 April 2024, the Republic of Korea held its 22nd general election. The Democratic Party (DP), the largest opposition party, secured 175 seats out of the National Assembly’s total of 300, marking a significant advancement since 2020 with an increase of 19 seats. This victory allowed them to maintain control of the parliament. Meanwhile, President Yoon Suk-Yeol’s ruling People Power Party (PPP) secured 108 seats, a slight decrease from its previous count of 114. Nevertheless, these losses were not as extensive as pre-election polls had suggested.

Yoon’s Domestic Policy and Post-Pandemic Recovery

The Republic of Korea is facing its next legislative election in April 2024. Due to its delicate political situation, the country stands at a crossroads where every ballot cast holds the power to redefine its trajectory on the world stage, as well as domestically.

Forging the Future: The EU-South Korea Digital Partnership in the AI Era

The EU and the Republic of Korea signed a digital partnership in November 2022. Despite differing regulatory approaches to the evolving global AI market, a renewed AI partnership is emerging that aims to boost international market access, foster innovation, and establish a unified regulatory framework, benefiting both regions as well as global AI governance.

EU-Korea Security Cooperation and the War in Ukraine – A Double-edged Sword for Seoul?

As one of Asia’s leading military powers and arms manufacturers, South Korea has developed a solid and growing security cooperation framework with the EU, with nuclear non-proliferation, disarmament and cybersecurity at its core. In light of the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine, Charles Michel’s and Ursula von der Leyen’s visit to Seoul on 22 May 2023 may have given this close relationship a new impetus.

Green Trilateral Cooperation: A Next Step for the EU’s Strategic Partnership with Japan and the Republic of Korea

The summit on 16 March 2023 between the Japanese and Republic of Korea (ROK) heads of state was seen as a milestone in relations between the two powers. Such a thawing could present a unique opportunity for Japan and Korea’s strategic partners and see the establishment of a structured trilateral relationship on green cooperation with the EU. This EIAS opinion piece explores how a trilateral promises to strengthen current rapprochement efforts and complements ongoing measures being taken to achieve each actor’s strategic goals in the green transition.

Event Report available: Briefing Seminar on the Korean Peninsula

On 6 April 2023, the European Institute for Asian Studies (EIAS) hosted a briefing seminar discussing prevailing questions on the Korean peninsula.

The Missing Piece of the EU-ROK Digital Partnership: Development Cooperation in ASEAN

Signed in November 2022, the EU-ROK Digital Partnership offers itself as an unprecedented opportunity for both parties to develop their cooperation in the digital realm. Yet for all it does succeed in covering, the agreement remains silent on development cooperation in the area of digital capacity building in third countries.

The EU-Korea Digital Partnership: Advancing cooperation in the cyber world

In November 2022, the European Union (EU) and the Republic of Korea (ROK/ Korea) set in motion their Digital Partnership. The initiative was largely anticipated by both partners and finally came to fruition after years of negotiation. The partnership sets a commonly accepted framework which aims “to collectively respond to the implications of emerging technologies on people, industry and society, and to develop and advance technologies, policies, and research cooperation”. How will the EU-Korea Digital Partnership be implemented and how will it address the ambitions it has put forward?

New date: EIAS-UEA Panel Discussion “Changing Dynamics in the East China Sea: Pacific puddle or simmering storm?” – 7.09.2022

Will the combination of the health crisis, conventional warfare and cyber aggression confirm a renewed focus upon state-centric realpolitik approaches to security in the East China Sea, or will it spur new conceptions and definitions of security that can be shared by like-minded states and other actors?