The Future of US-Korean Relations: The Imbalance of Power

by Feffer; John

• ISBN13: 9780415770378
• ISBN10: 0415770378
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2006-06-13
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

US relations with North and South Korea have been characterized by profound asymmetries of power and perception which in recent years have led to increased tensions among the three countries. An uneasy truce concerning North Korea's nuclear ambitions ended in 2002 bringing the US closer to a war footing. In South Korea, meanwhile, anger and resentment over an unequal partnership, combined with an ongoing US re-evaluation of its security role on the peninsula, have put an enormous strain on a longstanding alliance. The Future of US-Korean Relations brings together twelve prominent experts on US-Korean and US-Pacific relations to explore the many dimensions of current and future US foreign policy. Charting new developments in North and South Korea, the contributors examine US-Korean relations through such prisms as nationalism, the media, regional relations and human rights issues. In relating the downward spiral in US relations with the Korean peninsula, the contributors provide analysisthat runs counter to conventional interpretations, and offer clear and balanced policy recommendations for remedying the crises. The Future of US-Korean Relations is deeply incisive and broadly relevant as an ideal resource for students, teachers and policy professionals interested in security studies, East Asian politics and US foreign policy.

Table of Contents

Notes on contributors	xiii
ASCK statement	xvi
List of abbreviations	xvii
Introduction	1	(8)
JOHN FEFFER
1 US–North Korean relations	9	(20)
CHARLES K. ARMSTRONG
2 US–South Korean relations	29	(17)
KATHARINE MOON
3 The politics of nationalism in US–Korean relations	46	(18)
GI-WOOK SHIN AND PAUL Y. CHANG
4 The imbalance of power, the balance of asymmetric terror: mutual assured destruction (MAD) in Korea	64	(17)
JAE-JUNG SUH
5 Forever stepping back: the strange record of 15 years of negotiation between Japan and North Korea	81	(20)
GAVAN McCORMACK AND WADA HARUKI
6 China's new role in the US–DPRK nuclear confrontation	101	(29)
SAMUEL S. KIM
7 The exodus: North Korea's out-migration	130	(30)
JAMES D. SEYMOUR
8 North Korea on Capitol Hill	160	(18)
KARIN LEE AND ADAM MILES
9 Grave threats and grand bargains: the United States and regional order in North-east Asia	178	(22)
JOHN FEFFER
Select bibliography	200	(5)
Index	205