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The Koreas
South Korean Government Warns Striking Doctors to Return to Work or Face Legal Action
By Hyung-jin Kim
About 7,800 medical interns and residents in South Korea have walked off their jobs this week to protest the government’s push to recruit more medical students.
North Korea: An Interesting Start to 2024
By ISOZAKI Atsuhito
A new policy direction seems to be emerging.
South Korea in Political Disarray Ahead of the April Parliamentary Elections
By Hyung-A Kim
Both President Yoon and his PPP and the opposition Democratic Party face leadership struggles and public backlash.
North Korea Welcomes Russian Tourists, Likely Its First Since the Pandemic
By Emma Burrows
The trip was a surprise to Asia observers, who had expected the first post-pandemic tourists to North Korea to come from China, the North’s biggest diplomatic ally and economic pipeline.
President Yoon Finally Addresses the First Lady’s Dior Pouch Controversy
By Eunwoo Lee
The pre-taped interview, timed for the Lunar New Year holiday, did little to assuage public anger and questions about Kim Keon-hee's political role.
South Korean President Reiterates That Seoul Will Not Seek Its Own Nuclear Deterrent
By Kim Tong-hyung
Ultimately, Yoon said, acquiring nuclear weapons isn't a realistic option as the ensuing sanctions would ruin the country’s trade-dependent economy.
An ‘Orange Revolution’ in South Korean Politics?
By Yong-Shik Lee
Ousted PPP chair Lee Jun-seok has started his own political party. Will his New Reform Party become a force to be reckoned with?
South Korean Police Investigating 14-year-old Boy as Suspect of Attack on Lawmaker
By Kim Tong-hyung
The attack Thursday on Bae Hyunjin, a member of the conservative ruling party, came just weeks after a man stabbed opposition leader Lee Jae-myung in the neck.
North Korea Appears to Demolish ‘Reunification Arch’ as Kim Jong Un Turns Against Ties With South
By Kim Tong-hyung
The apparent demolition comes less than a month after Kim announced that his country would no longer pursue reconciliation with the South.
Relitigating the Past: How to Overcome Recent Court Cases and Strengthen the Japan-South Korea Relationship
By Cornelius Cornelssen
Two recent legal rulings in South Korea are once again threatening to unravel the relationship.
Kim Jong Un’s Declaration of a Hostile Relationship Between North and South Korea Is a Big Deal
By Lee Min-yong
With a decisive change in the North’s policy toward the South, the Korean Peninsula has now devolved from a state of armistice to one where conflict could loom at any moment.
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.