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The Korea Times

Entertainment & Arts

SCMP
Asia

The Korea Times

Opinion

Columnists

Sandip Kumar Mishra

Korea's proactive move and Japan's reluctance

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol visited Tokyo for a summit with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on March 16. It was a bilateral meeting that happened after a gap of almost 12 years. Despite the Japanese leadership, which kept repeating that no bilateral dialogue is possible without South Korea resolving the forced labor issue, Yoon has been consistently working to reach out to Japan and restore good relations.

2023-03-21 16:45

'Enemy' North Korea: Do labels help?

South Korea in its Defense White Paper released on Feb. 16 again referred to North Korea and its military as an enemy. The label hardly surprised anyone and it was quite expected. Actually, after coming to power, the Yoon Suk Yeol administration adopted a tit-for-tat approach toward North Korea and his policies, statements and behavior clearly indicate that South Korea considers North Korea as an enemy country.

2023-03-01 16:40

China's role in making Indo-Pacific Strategy possible

The idea of an Indo-Pacific Strategy (IPS), which was initially considered to be an impossible proposition, appears to be increasingly becoming more real. Although it is still not a definite strategy and there are multiple names for it such as strategy, outlook, vision, idea or framework, in recent years there are more and more countries which have declared their IPS and South Korea is going to join the club very soon.

2023-01-01 16:40

Tokyo confronts Beijing in more explicit way

Japan appears to be more explicit in its contests with China in recent years. At the East Asian Summit in Cambodia, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida asserted that China's actions are “infringing on Japan's sovereignty” and “escalating tensions” in the region.

2022-11-24 14:13

North Korea needs urgent attention

North Korean nuclear and missile capabilities have grown alarmingly. In 2022, North Korea conducted several missile tests and according to South Korean Unification Minister Kwon Young-se, these tests seek to “tame South Korea.” The unification minister feels that there are two other reasons for North Korea's incessant missile tests. One, North Korea wants to upgrade its weapons and two, North Korea wants to draw the attention of the U.S. government.

2022-10-17 17:45

North Korea's 'new' nuclear posture

North Korea's Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) passed a new law regarding its nuclear posture. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in his speech at an Assembly session elucidated the law Sept. 8, saying that his country would launch an “automatic” and “immediate” nuclear strike if it is attacked by “hostile forces.”

2022-09-20 16:21

'Vendetta politics' in Korea

Is it true that Korea's people and economy are of the highest grade but its politics is disappointing? The question is posed as the current Korean administration has been allegedly trying to find faults with the previous Moon Jae-in administration.

2022-08-18 16:45

'ABCD strategy' or New Southern Policy

After coming to power, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol proposed the so-called “ABCD strategy” (advance human capital, build health security, connect cultures, and digitize Asian infrastructure) toward Southeast Asian countries and India.

2022-06-30 16:15

South Korea's diplomatic olive branch to Japan and obstacles ahead

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol is seeking to improve bilateral relations between South Korea and Japan. Unlike other Korean leaders, he is a neophyte and it is expected that he may reintroduce a “future-oriented” relationship with Japan.

2022-04-25 16:29

Prospect of South Korea joining Quad

With the victory of Yoon Suk-yeol in the March 9 presidential election, it is being speculated that South Korea may decide to formally join the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad).

2022-03-24 16:16

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Top 10 Stories

1	Revised Japanese textbooks distort wartime forced labor, catching Korea off guard

2	Clock ticks for China's massive repatriation of N. Korean defectors

3	Gold price nears all-time high amid financial jitters

4	Ramsar wetland in Han River cleaned up for protected birdlife

5	BMW launches new XM

6	Civic groups in Gwangju await meeting with Chun Doo-hwan's grandson

7	CJ CheilJedang sees chicken as next big seller after frozen dumpling

8	North Korea unveils tactical nuclear warheads

9	2024 budget to focus on tackling low birthrate

10	Over 1,000 financially vulnerable Koreans apply for new emergency gov't loans

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