Throughout North Korea’s history, it has regarded external relations with suspicion and as a potential threat to its regime. With North Korea working towards denuclearization, there is now hope for an economic opening. This book examines the external economic strategies that North Korea may consider for its reforms and development, which are related to the East Asian economic integration process. This book emphasizes that considering theoretical factors as well as conditions of the North Korean economy, economic opening and integration should have high priority, anteceding or at least being parallel to economic reforms and transformation. Also, among various alternative strategies for achieving the goal of economic reform and development based on economic opening, the utilization of East Asian regional economic integration framework would be the best option for North Korea, because this framework can provide an opportunity for North Korea to overcome structural problems in its external economic relations and to circumvent political conflicts, thus leading to a smoother rapprochement towards economic opening. This book is timely as it shows how a new economic recovery strategy on the Korean Peninsula may be accomplished.

Introduction -- ch. 1. China and East Asia production network -- ch. 2. The internationalisation of China's Renminbi -- ch. 3. The internationalisation of Chinese enterprises -- ch. 4. Cross-strait economic relations: Taiwan's perspective -- ch. 5. CEPA and Mainland-Hong Kong's economic relations --ch. 6. China-Asean economic relations remain resilient despite rising challenges -- ch. 7. Ever-bonding Sino-Korean economic relationship but questionable contribution to regional integration -- ch. 8. China and Japan: great economic integration without a bilateral free trade agreement -- ch. 9. The political economy of East Asia economic integration.

With featuring far-reaching diversities and disparities among the regional states in their political, economic and social systems and cultural and religious orientations, East Asia is a microcosm of international society at large. Nevertheless, there are unique dynamics unfolding in East Asia at the turn of the twenty-first century, namely the rise of China as a contender for regional and global hegemony and a set of collective initiatives to integrate the region into a harmonious community. This book provides new arguments on China’s rise and the transformation of East Asia and analyzes the foreign policy behavior of the regional states and relations among them. In doing so, the contributors show why and how China is rising, and how China’s rise shapes the emerging regional structures and institutions in East Asia. Furthermore, given the East Asian context where the world’s second and third largest economies coexist with much smaller states and with China’s ascendency likely to continue, this book challenges the pervasive dichotomy of hegemony and community. This allows for a fuller and more nuanced account of China’s role and the shifting regional policies in East Asia in which hegemonic cooperation does not necessarily lead to a hegemonic form of regional order. Presenting strategic, political, economic and historical perspectives on China’s changing role in the region and the development of regionalism, China’s Rise and Regional Integration in East Asia will be of great interest to students and scholars of Chinese politics, Asian politics, international relations and regionalism.

The book offers such significantly in-depth evidence of the tremendous complexities involved in PRC-ROC relations that scholars and policymakers alike will greatly appreciate its broader applicability to current comparative research on contemporary East Asia. Lisa Fischler, East Asia Integration Studies Professor Chow has put together an excellent collection of papers analyzing some of the most important political and economic issues in East Asia. The focus is on Taiwan, but several chapters deal separately with the United States, China, North Korea, Japan, and the EU. This is a very useful publication for those interested in contemporary East Asia. Thomas J. Bellows, The University of Texas at San Antonio, US and Editor, American Journal of Chinese Studies The US policy of supporting a democratic Taiwan while simultaneously engaging China is a delicate and complex balance, with outcomes critical to economic, security and strategic interests in Asia. At the same time, rising Taiwanese identity amid the emerging power of China continues to change the paradigm. The contributors to this volume explore the political and economic dimensions of this complicated and pressing issue. Whether the US China relationship evolves as one of strategic partners or strategic competitors will significantly affect power relations between Washington, Beijing and Taipei. More generally, it will set the tone for peace, stability and prosperity in the Asia Pacific. Peter Chow examines the potential crisis, as well as mitigating influences, by investigating political, economic and security considerations affecting cross-Taiwan Strait relations. He presents broad coverage of recent changes of policy in Taiwan, China and the US, with special emphasis on the adjustments of American policy on Taiwanese identity amid its democratization. An overall evaluation of current US policies toward China based on realism and idealism illustrates the shifting US China Taiwan relations. This insightful treatment will be of great interest to students and scholars of international relations, political economy, foreign relations, Asian studies, political science and economics. Civic leaders and representatives of interest groups involved with US China Taiwan relations will find the volume of great value in their work.

Increasing numbers of free trade and economic partnership agreements have been concluded among many countries in East Asia, and economic integration has progressed rapidly on both a de facto and de jure basis. However, as the authors of this book argue, integration may intensify regional inequalities in East Asia and so this process has attracted much attention of late. Will it actually succeed in achieving greater economic growth or will it in fact cause growing regional disparity? This book presents a clear picture of East Asian integration, focusing on various aspects including: the structure of intra-regional trade industrial location patterns especially of multinational enterprises the formation of industrial agglomeration the development of political and institutional frameworks for integration. Economic Integration in East Asia addresses these issues from the perspectives of both spatial and neoclassical economics. As the book highlights, if the regional disparities continue to grow, this may constitute a fatal obstacle to deepening integration and the growth potential of East Asia. With its focus firmly on recommendations for the future, this book will be of great interest to academics and researchers of development, Asian studies and economic geography as well as development specialists in government and international organizations involved in East Asian integration.

This book reviews and analyses East Asian economic integration by looking at China-ASEAN economic relations and the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (CAFTA). The book explores the economic relations between China and ASEAN after the Cold War ended, investigates China's motives to establish the CAFTA (China-ASEAN Free Trade Area) and evaluates economic integration in East Asia, in which both China and ASEAN hold key roles. Much of the research is based upon interviews which the author conducted with key policy makers in China.After providing a theoretical framework and discussing methodology the author provides a background on economic cooperation between China and ASEAN from the 1980's onwards. China's role in trade and investment cooperation before and after 2001 is also analyzed as are China's shifting motives for cooperating with ASEAN. The author also looks at the features and the future for East Asian economic integration. Much of the research is based on Chinese language sources which are not usually referred to in western works in this field.

Southeast Asia-North Korea Relations reveals the genesis and evolution of Southeast Asian countries’ diplomatic relations with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK/North Korea) by unpacking the underlying political, economic, and security connections. In this book, chapters analyse in detail the individual bilateral linkages of the ten states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) with the DPRK that vary in intensity and visibility. Bringing together an international group of experts, including, uniquely, authors representing every individual ASEAN state, this edited volume dissects the parameters of the bilateral relationships as well as the multi-faceted regional-level interactions and the roles of certain key external actors, especially South Korea and China. This book is a path-breaking addition to the study and analysis of regional inter-linkages in Asia and will be of interest to students and scholars working on North Korean studies, Southeast Asia, including ASEAN, and also on Korean Peninsula topics as well as international relations and security studies, especially considering the role of “small” states.

International production networks in manufacturing, particularly in machinery industries, have rapidly developed over the last two decades, resulting in dramatic increases in intra-regional and intra-industry trade, providing a key source of regional growth, integration and development in East Asia. This book provides a better understanding on how to effectively further increase SME participation in East Asian production networks, and in doing so identifies key challenges and issues that they need to address. This book aims to not only fill the theory-practice gap, but also to lay solid foundations for designing national arrangements and a regional institutional frameworks to further encourage and support SME engagement and participation in regional and global production networks. The book contains several country case studies and by drawing upon individual country experiences, at various stages of economic development, this book demonstrates the varying difficulty faced by SMEs in ASEAN member countries attempting to participate in regional production networks and highlighting differences in needs and policy priorities. This book offers both a more focused theme on the assessment of globalization and a rather unique approach by focusing upon the particular importance of SMEs, and by utilizing micro-level data at the firm or plant level. Its policy insights and the richness and uniqueness of the empirical findings will make the book an invaluable contribution to understanding East Asian production networks.

Preface Ⅰ.A Study to Analyze Cost­Benefits of the Reunification of Korean Peninsula to the United States (Marcus Noland) 1. Unification Scenarios and Interests of the United States 2. General Equilibrium Calibration of Unification 3. Implications for the United States from the Gravity Model 4. Policy Issues Ⅱ.A Study to Analyze Cost­Benefits of the Reunification of Korean Peninsula to China (Jin Jingyi et al.) 1. Introduction 2. Ideal Condition of the Korean Peninsula within China’s Development Strategy in Northeast Asia 3. Unification of the Korean Peninsula and Economic Benefits for China 4. Unification of the Korean Peninsula and Security Benefits for China 5. Sino-Korean Cooperation Strategies for Korean Unification 6. Conclusion Ⅲ.A Study to Analyze Cost­Benefits of the Reunification of Korean Peninsula to Japan (Kyoji Fukao et al.) 1. Introduction 2. Scenarios of Economic Development after Unification 3. Increase in GDP and Employment in Japan and Other Major Economies 4. A ‘Super Korea’ as Japan’s Rival in the East Asian Division of Labor 5. Financing North Korea’s Infrastructure 6. Role of Japanese Private Firms in Supporting the Infrastructure Projects Ⅳ.A Study to Analyze Cost­Benefits of the Reunification of Korean Peninsula to the Russian Federation (Alexander Zhebin et al.) 1. Factors Determining Russia’s Korean Policy 2. Major Shortcomings of the Existing Reunification Scenarios 3. Cost-Benefits of 5 Unification Scenarios 4. Suggestions for South Korea’s Unification Policy Ⅴ. The Effects of Economic Integration between South and North Korea(Sung Hankyoung) 1. Introduction 2. Changes due to Economic Integration 3. Model and Scenario 4. Analysis of Results by Scenario 5. Comparative Analysis of Scenario Results 6. Policy Implications Ⅵ.Gradual Economic Integration between South and North Korea and Economic Cooperation in Northeast Asia (Kang Moonsung et al.) 1. Introduction 2. Fundamental Directions for Achieving Economic Integration of North andSouth Korea 3. North and South Korean Economic Integration and Effects on NortheastAsian Division of Labor 4. North and South Korean Economic Integration and Northeast AsianEconomic Cooperation 5. Gradual Achievement of South and North Korean Economic Integration Ⅶ.Analysis on Diplomatic and Security Benefits of Unification and Strategies for Unification (Chun Chae-sung et al.) 1. Introduction 2. International Politics in the Current East Asian Region 3. Position on the Unification in the Korean Peninsula of Countries US, China,Japan and Russia 4. Unification Diplomacy Strategies for the Unified Korean Peninsula vis-à-visNeighboring Countries Those of us living in the contemporary times have a common mission to achieve unification in the Korean peninsula for the joint progress of South and North Korea based on the support of the international society and Northeast Asian cooperation. Korean unification is also an historical imperative for the Koreans who have been one nation and one people for a long time. Therefore it is necessary to present to the government strategies and policy alternatives through in-depth research on ‘when’ and ‘how’ unification would be achieved, and ‘what’ kinds of impact it would have, rather than ‘if’ it will happen. In this respect, this book is a summary of 7 studies conducted under the ‘Research Project on the Unified Korea and Northeast Asian Economic Cooperation’. Its main contents include analyses on the costs and benefits of the unification of Korea in the perspective of its four neighboring countries—US, China, Japan, and Russia; effects of inter-Korean economic integration in Korea’s perspective, and analysis of diplomatic/security benefits of unification. The world is now more interconnected than ever, and Korean unification will invariably impact its neighbors. In this regard, the cost-benefit analyses of the four countries are quite meaningful in that 12 overseas Korea specialists analyze the benefits of Korean unification and provide policy suggestions to maximize these benefits from the perspective of their own respective countries. In addition, the three research projects conducted by 11 domestic experts which provide advice on the effects of economic integration along with strategies for Northeast Asian cooperation based on their analysis on inter-Korean economic integration and diplomatic/security benefits of unification are also extremely valuable. The research projects conducted by researchers from 4 major countries present four unification scenarios-status-quo, North Korea’s reform and opening-up, absorption of the North by South Korea, and peaceful unification. In the case of peaceful unification, which is preferable to all parties involved, the US, China, Japan, and Russia will all witness an increase of $7.6 to 48.5 billion in their GDPs, and creation of 210,000 to 5,640,000 new jobs, resulting in positive ripple impacts for all 4 countries. According to the analyses, China will be the biggest benefactor of Korean unification, the US and Japan will reap similar benefits, and Russia will benefit the least. In the event of Korean unification, China’s three northeast provinces will become a vibrant logistics center and hub for the Eurasian Continent and the Pacific region. According to the study by Japanese researchers, a ‘Super Korea’ will emerge after Korean unification, rivaling Japan. The russian researchers analyzed that if energy exports increases; and the Siberian railway and gas pipeline were connected all the way to the Korean peninsula as a result of unification, it will lead to an economic boom in the Far East. Domestic researchers show that unification will bring changes in factors of production, market expansion, decrease in military spending, and improvement in international credit rating. According to their various unification scenarios, North and South Korea’s GDP growth rates will increase 16%p and 1%p respectively between 2016 and 2030. In the early stages of unification, independent currencies should be used but One Korea Indexed Unit of Account (OKU) must also be introduced; and in order to make use of North Korea’s human resources, disparity of wages between South and North Korea is unavoidable. They also analyze that a unified Korea will contribute to the resolution of the security dilemma in Northeast Asia by buffering the competition for economic and military hegemony between major powers such as the US vis-a-vis China and China vis-a-vis Japan, facilitating cooperation. Also, North Korea’s denuclearization alone will, in and of itself, significantly benefit neighboring countries. Those of us living in the contemporary times have a common mission to achieve unification in the Korean peninsula for the joint progress of South and North Korea based on the support of the international society and Northeast Asian cooperation. Korean unification is also an historical imperative for the Koreans who have been one nation and one people for a long time. Therefore it is necessary to present to the government strategies and policy alternatives through in-depth research on ‘when’ and ‘how’ unification would be achieved, and ‘what’ kinds of impact it would have, rather than ‘if’ it will happen. In this respect, this book is a summary of 7 studies conducted under the ‘Research Project on the Unified Korea and Northeast Asian Economic Cooperation’. Its main contents include analyses on the costs and benefits of the unification of Korea in the perspective of its four neighboring countries—US, China, Japan, and Russia; effects of inter-Korean economic integration in Korea’s perspective, and analysis of diplomatic/security benefits of unification. The world is now more interconnected than ever, and Korean unification will invariably impact its neighbors. In this regard, the cost-benefit analyses of the four countries are quite meaningful in that 12 overseas Korea specialists analyze the benefits of Korean unification and provide policy suggestions to maximize these benefits from the perspective of their own respective countries. In addition, the three research projects conducted by 11 domestic experts which provide advice on the effects of economic integration along with strategies for Northeast Asian cooperation based on their analysis on inter-Korean economic integration and diplomatic/security benefits of unification are also extremely valuable. The research projects conducted by researchers from 4 major countries present four unification scenarios-status-quo, North Korea’s reform and opening-up, absorption of the North by South Korea, and peaceful unification. In the case of peaceful unification, which is preferable to all parties involved, the US, China, Japan, and Russia will all witness an increase of $7.6 to 48.5 billion in their GDPs, and creation of 210,000 to 5,640,000 new jobs, resulting in positive ripple impacts for all 4 countries. According to the analyses, China will be the biggest benefactor of Korean unification, the US and Japan will reap similar benefits, and Russia will benefit the least. In the event of Korean unification, China’s three northeast provinces will become a vibrant logistics center and hub for the Eurasian Continent and the Pacific region. According to the study by Japanese researchers, a ‘Super Korea’ will emerge after Korean unification, rivaling Japan. The russian researchers analyzed that if energy exports increases; and the Siberian railway and gas pipeline were connected all the way to the Korean peninsula as a result of unification, it will lead to an economic boom in the Far East. Domestic researchers show that unification will bring changes in factors of production, market expansion, decrease in military spending, and improvement in international credit rating. According to their various unification scenarios, North and South Korea’s GDP growth rates will increase 16%p and 1%p respectively between 2016 and 2030. In the early stages of unification, independent currencies should be used but One Korea Indexed Unit of Account (OKU) must also be introduced; and in order to make use of North Korea’s human resources, disparity of wages between South and North Korea is unavoidable. They also analyze that a unified Korea will contribute to the resolution of the security dilemma in Northeast Asia by buffering the competition for economic and military hegemony between major powers such as the US vis-a-vis China and China vis-a-vis Japan, facilitating cooperation. Also, North Korea’s denuclearization alone will, in and of itself, significantly benefit neighboring countries.

'This book offers a fascinating exploration of the contradictions of East Asian economic integration: a topic of enormous contemporary significance to observers of world political and economic affairs. The collection provides an unusually rigorous and systematic treatment of this important topic, drawing on contributions from an impressive array of experts. It will provide a valuable resource for students, scholars and other observers seeking deeper understanding of the contemporary dynamics and challenges of East Asian integration.' - Kate MacDonald, University of Melbourne, Australia 'East Asia is a crucial part of the global economy. This book analyses three key elements of East Asian economic integration: trade, investment and international finance. The authors are leading experts in their fields. Their book represents an important addition to the literature on a subject of fundamental importance both regionally and globally.' - Bradly J. Condon, ITAM, Mexico City This book analyses recent developments and likely future paths for trade and financial integration in East Asia. It suggests a more coherent, balanced way forward for regional economic integration and analyses implications for institution building in East Asia. East Asia has achieved a high degree of intra-regional trade, investment and GDP correlation, through an expanding web of free trade agreements and production networks. However, financially, most regional economies are linked more closely to North America and Europe than to each other. As trade integration has accelerated, financial and monetary integration has not kept pace. East Asian Economic Integration analyses potential reasons and remedies for this phenomenon through a multidisciplinary framework of law, politics and economics. This comprehensive book will appeal to researchers and students in political science, international relations, trade law, international finance law, and regional studies generally. It will also be of great interest to regional