On Jan. 6, North Korea conducted its fourth test of a nuclear device, which it claimed was a “hydrogen bomb.” Despite the U.N. Security Council’s responding by approving the strongest sanctions ever against the country, Pyongyang has since only heightened its threats against the United States and South Korea, sparking fears of a possible crisis. A panel consisting of experts from South Korea’s Presidential Committee for Unification Preparation (PCUP) and Shorenstein APARC will discuss the latest situation on the Korean Peninsula, including economic and political developments in both North and South Korea and prospects for inter-Korean relations, as well as the American policy response.
Panelists:
- Ambassador Chong Wook Chung, Vice Chairman, PCUP; former South Korean National Security Adviser and Ambassador to China
- Joo Hyun Kim, Economy Subcommittee Chair, PCUP
- Ihn Hwi Park, Foreign Affairs and National Security Subcommittee Member, PCUP
- Thomas Fingar, Shorenstein APARC Distinguished Fellow
- Ambassador Kathleen Stephens, William J. Perry Distinguished Fellow, Shorenstein APARC; former U.S. Ambassador to South Korea
- David Straub (moderator), Associate Director, Korea Program, Shorenstein APARC
Ambassador Chong Wook Chung is vice chairman of the Presidential Committee for Unification Preparation (PCUP), which was established by South Korean President Park Geun-hye in 2014 to make comprehensive and systemic preparations for the unification of the Korean Peninsula. He also chairs the Committee for the 70th anniversary of Korean Liberation. Previously, he served as the Senior Secretary for Foreign Policy and National Security to President Kim Young Sam (1993-95), Korean Ambassador to China (1996-98), and Professor of International Politics at Seoul National University (1977-93), where he is currently a professor emeritus. He was an assistant professor of International Studies at American University (1975-77), a visiting professor at George Washington University, a Freeman Foundation Visiting Professor at Claremont McKenna College, a Kim Koo Visiting Professor in the department of government at Harvard University (Spring 2011), and a visiting professor at the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore (2010-11). He is also a distinguished professor at Incheon University. He received a Bachelor of Arts in international relations from Seoul National University and a doctorate in political science from Yale University. His book-length English publications include
Maoism and Development (Seoul National University Press, 1980) and
Korean Options in a Changing International Order (co-editor, University of California Press, Berkeley, 1992). He received the Yale Alumni Award in 2007.
Joo Hyun Kim is a senior advisor of the Hyundai Research Institute where he had been the president and CEO for 11 years (2004-14), and currently chairs the Economic Subcommittee of PCUP. He specializes in financial market and macroeconomics, and his current research interest includes development of North Korean economy and unified economy of Korean Peninsula. He has also been active as an advisory committee member of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and recently has become the inaugural director of the Future Korea Institute at Kookmin University. He received a doctorate in finance from Arizona State University.
Ihn Hwi Park is a professor of international studies and vice president of international affairs at Ewha Womans University, and a member of PCUP's Foreign Affairs and National Security Subcommittee. His area of expertise includes international security, U.S. foreign policy and Northeast Asian international relations. He is also an advisory committee member of the Ministry of Unification, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Ministry of National Defense. He has written numerous articles in leading journals including
International Journal of Korean Unification Studies,
Korea Journal of Defense Analysis, and
Global Economic Review. He received a doctorate in international politics from Northwestern University.
