JULY WEBINAR
THURSDAY, JULY 15, 2021, 7 PM - 8 PM CDT
US-KOREA RELATIONS UNDER THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION AND THE PROSPECTS FOR SECURITY IN EAST ASIA
The Gateway Korea Foundation (GKF) is pleased to welcome Dr. Gregg Brazinsky and Dr. Kwangjin Kim for our July webinar, during which the two will explore the complex relationship between the United States, China, and the two Koreas. They will discuss the difficult task that Moon Jae In faces in balancing between the competing demands of Beijing and Washington. They will also explore what role, if any, China might play in promoting dialogue between the US and the DPRK going forward.
Welcoming remarks will be given by Dr. Young Sok Kim (Honorable Chicago Consul General of Korea), and Sang Kim (Director of the University of Missouri Asian Affairs Center) will moderate.
GKF’s July webinar is sponsored by the Korean Consulate General in Chicago.
EVOLUTION OF US-KOREA RELATIONS
On May 21, 2021, during the ROK-US summit talk, two allies agreed to open a new chapter of their alliance status. Their lengthy joint statement showed that the ROK will contribute more to US led global security initiatives, and that the US will closely cooperate to create a joint strategy for addressing North Korea. This agreement seems to be a revival of the global alliance vision announced at the 2009 ROK-US summit. At the time, US global policy needed world partners, and the ROK’s capabilities had been continuously growing. However, during the decade since 2010, North Korean threats, including nuclear provocation, have dominated ROK-US alliance issues.
So far, the ROK-US alliance status and other issues related to it have been shaped by three key factors: US global policy, South Korean capabilities, and North Korean threats. While these three factors were much more stable during the Cold War era, there have been many changes to induce the evolution of the ROK-US alliance status after the demise of the Cold War. In particular, a new version of the US global initiative and the further development of ROK capabilities not only introduced a global alliance vision, but also led to the adjustment of alliance issues, such as cost sharing and operational control transfer. At the same time, new types of North Korean threats, including ICBM capability, have forced the ROK-US alliance to focus on extended deterrence within the Korean peninsula, instead of viewing the security threats as a global issue. Therefore, the three aforementioned factors are key enablers to shape ROK-US alliance status.
Now it is time to consider the future of the ROK-US alliance status based on the 2021 ROK-US summit. At this time, US global policy and South Korean capabilities have recently been disclosed to the public, but North Korean behaviors are still unpredictable. Depending on the North Korean responses to ROK-US joint strategy, the future of the ROK-US alliance status will be determined.
ABOUT DR. GREGG BRAZINSKY (GUEST SPEAKER)
Gregg A. Brazinsky is Professor of History and International Affairs at The George Washington University. He is the author of two books: Nation Building in South Korea: Koreans, Americans, and the Making of a Democracy (2007) and Winning the Third World: Sino-American Rivalry during the Cold War. He is working on two other book projects one looks at Sino-North Korean relations and the other looks at American nation building in South Korea, Taiwan, and Japan. He is the author of numerous journal articles and op-eds. His work has appeared in Diplomatic History, The Washington Post, and The Chicago Tribune. He currently serves as director of the Asian Studies BA and MA Programs at the Elliott School, interim director of the Sigur Center for Asian Studies, and deputy director of the GW Institute for Korean Studies.
ABOUT DR. KWANGJIN KIM (GUEST SPEAKER)
Dr. Kwangjin Kim is an Air Force Brigadier General (BG) of the Republic of Korea. Recently, he served as the President of Air University in Daejeon. Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) Air University provides regular military education programs for mid-career and junior level Air Force officers. Before joining Air University, he was the Commander of the 3rd Training Wing at Sacheon Air Force Base. He also worked as Deputy Director of Countering WMD Center in Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). In this position, he was responsible for North Korea situation assessments and development of counter strategy against North Korean nuclear and other WMD threats. Previously, he was the Chief of the North Korea Policy division at JCS and a Deputy Director of the US Policy division in the Ministry of National Defense (MND). Since his time at the MND, he has participated in defense ministerial level talks between Korea and the US. Also, he was a senior officer of arms control at Korea’s Air Force headquarters. Trained as an F-16 pilot, BG Kim served for several years as the leader of squadron intelligence formation, 19th fighter wing. He was educated at the Korea Air Force Academy (Bachelor’s degree), Korea National Defense University (Master’s degree), and University of Missouri – Columbia (Ph.D. in Political Science). In 2012, he was a fellow of the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs at Harvard University. In 2013, he completed the High Defense Study Course for Asian-Pacific Officers, Spain Higher Defense Studies College, Spanish Higher Center for National Defense Studies (CESEDEN). He is also the author of two books, The Stages of Development and Termination of Wars between States: A Strategy for Conflict Management (published in English by Edwin Mellen Press, 2008) and Democracies and Use of Forces: Iraq War, Kosovo War, and Korea-US Alliance (published in Korean by Sogang University Press, 2014)
ABOUT DR. YOUNG SOK KIM (WELCOMING REMARKS)
In May 2019, Dr. Young Sok Kim arrived in Chicago as the Consul General of the Republic of Korea in Chicago. Since 2001, Consul General Kim has been a professor of international law at Ewha Womans University in Seoul, Korea. Before becoming a law professor, he was a diplomat and joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1991. Consul General Kim received his BA in Law from Seoul National University in 1990 and his Ph.D. in Law from the University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign in 2000.
ABOUT SANG KIM (MODERATOR)
Sang Kim has served as the director of the MU Asian Affairs Center and Missouri International Training Institute since September 2004, and as director of the MU Confucius Institute since November 2015. From 1998, he served in the Asian Affairs Center as the Korean program coordinator, assistant director, associate director and interim director. Sang brings hands-on experience and knowledge of international relations in the Pacific Rim countries to his position at MU. Sang and his teams establish and maintain partnerships and programmatic relationships with universities and government entities. These relationships have resulted in the development of various educational programs for governments and academic and research institutions, which enhance the influence and connections of Missouri throughout Asia.