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Mitch Shin

Mitch Shin

Mitch Shin is a chief correspondent for The Diplomat, covering the Korean Peninsula. He is also a research fellow at The Institute for Peace & Diplomacy and a columnist for The Korea Times.

Shin is a chief correspondent for The Diplomat, covering foreign affairs and national security of the two Koreas. He is also a research fellow at The Institute for Peace & Diplomacy and a regular columnist for the Korea Times.
Previously, he was a nonresident Korea Foundation fellow at Pacific Forum and a nonresident research fellow at the Institute for Security & Development Policy, Stockholm Korea Center.
An expert on the South Korean government’s policy on North Korea, his research areas are inter-Korean relations, North Korea-U.S. relations, South Korea-U.S. relations, deterrence, nonproliferation, and U.S. policy on North Korea. His articles and comments have also appeared in various publications including Fox News, Yahoo News, VOA, Asia Times, and Japan Times.
Shin received his B.A. from the University of Utah.
Posts by Mitch Shin
February 28, 2024

Will Kim Jong Un Meet With Japan’s Prime Minister Kishida?

By Mitch Shin
Amid the stalled nuclear talks between the U.S. and North Korea, Japan seeks to hold a summit meeting with North Korea.

January 17, 2024

Pyongyang Wants to Be DPRK, Not North Korea

By Mitch Shin
Underneath the belligerence, the reframing by Pyongyang actually opens an opportunity, if Seoul can seize it.
December 25, 2023

Previewing North Korea’s Strategic Moves in 2024 

By Mitch Shin
Expect North Korea to continue to advance military ties with Russia, push forward key advanced weapons programs (like nuclear subs), and generally shun diplomacy with the U.S. and South Korea.

May 08, 2023

South Korean President Holds Meeting With Japanese Prime Minister in Seoul

By Mitch Shin
For the first time in 12 years, the Japanese prime minister visited Seoul for a bilateral meeting with the South Korean president. 

May 05, 2023

North Korea Calls South Korean President a ‘Puppet Traitor’

By Mitch Shin
Pyongyang has been publishing belligerent statements slamming the South Korea-U.S. summit – and is eagerly seizing on South Korean criticisms for its own advantage. 

May 01, 2023

North Korea Issues Warning After US-South Korea Summit

By Mitch Shin
The powerful sister of the North Korean leader released a statement denouncing the Washington Declaration and the new Nuclear Consultative Group.
April 27, 2023

Yoon and Biden Announce ‘Washington Declaration’ to Lock in Nuclear Deterrent

By Mitch Shin
In Yoon’s visit to Washington this week, South Korea and the United States reaffirmed their joint efforts to respond to North Korean nuclear threats.

April 19, 2023

North Korea Heralds Completion of Its First Military Reconnaissance Satellite

By Mitch Shin
Kim Jong Un inspected the National Aerospace Development Administration and urged technicians to launch the military reconnaissance satellite at the planned (but unspecified) date.

April 14, 2023

North Korea Says It Tested New Type of ICBM: Hwasong-18

By Mitch Shin
A day after it launched a suspected new type of ICBM, North Korea confirmed the missile was the one unveiled during the military parade in February.

April 13, 2023

North Korea Fires Suspected New ICBM

By Mitch Shin
Just ahead of the Day of the Sun holiday, North Korea fired a long-range ballistic missile toward its east coast.

April 11, 2023

North Korean Leader Guides Central Military Commission Meeting

By Mitch Shin
While ghosting daily calls with South Korea, North Korea reaffirmed its clear intention to beef up its nuclear capabilities. 
April 06, 2023

North Korea Denounces South Korea-US Joint Military Drills

By Mitch Shin
North Korea asserted that the extensive South Korea-U.S. joint military drills push the security situation on the Korean Peninsula to “the brink of a nuclear war.”

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