Included in this volume are studies of the traditional leadership of the Yi dynasty as well as twentieth-century legislative, party, and bureaucratic leadership, and an evaluation of views of political leaders in South Korea, as well as two studies of the Communist system in North Korea.

Essential reading for anyone interested in contemporary Korea and East Asia, this book provides a comprehensive and balanced introduction to contemporary Korean politics. It explicates the great changes in South Korea, which has gone from being one of the poorest nations to a proud member of the Organization for Economic Development and Cooperation while making the transition to democracy. The work focuses on the geopolitical and cultural setting, historical evolution, institutional foundation, dynamics of political leadership, and political and administrative processes of Korean politics. It also features chapters on political determinants of the rise and decline of the Korean economy, foreign and unification policy of South Korea, and political development and decay in North Korea.

Over the past fifteen years, South Korea has transformed itself from an authoritarian government into a new democracy with a vibrant capitalist economy. Modernization, democratization, and globalization have played important roles in this transformation, and have greatly influenced the programs and policies of Korea's Sixth Republic. Covering developments through the 2003 elections, this book shows how the South Korean government and society have been shaped not only by the dynamics of these forces, but also by their interaction with the cultural norms of a post-Confucian society. The author provides a conceptual framework and baseline for examining political developments in Korea, and offers an analysis of the factors that are transforming Korean institutions, society, and politics. He discusses the forces shaping Korea's political economy and the performance of successive ROK governments, and also highlights the challenges faced by the newly elected administration of Roh Moo Huan, the North Korean issue, and more.

This textbook explains the politics of free trade agreements in Japan and South Korea. Examining free trade agreements in Japan and South Korea since the late 1990s, Choi and Oh analyze the role of institutions, political leaders, sectoral interests, and civil society in placing the two countries on alternate paths of free trade agreements at different points in time. Systematically approaching the politics of free trade agreements from each perspective, they expose the domestic political underpinnings of free trade agreements in a global trade order that is increasingly fraught with conflict. A valuable textbook for students of international political economy and international trade in East Asia, particularly those focusing on Japan and South Korea. It’s also a useful resource for scholars and policymakers looking to better understand trade politics in East Asia.

This comprehensive book examines the history of Korea's division and the political and economic development of both Koreas, their military confrontation, and their efforts at dialogue. Mr. Clough focuses on the international rivalry between the two, including relations with big power supporters and diplomatic competition inside and outside the UN and the nonaligned movement. The first book to explore in detail the competition between Seoul and Pyongyang outside the diplomatic circuit—from overseas construction projects to international athletic contests—Mr. Clough's study breaks new ground, analyzing South Korea's growing contacts with the USSR and the PRC, as well as North Korea's relationship with Japan and the United States. He views these contacts as probable precursors of diplomatic recognition of both Koreas by all four big powers. Identifying the problems and the choices for the United States in the rapidly changing environment in and around Korea, Mr. Clough makes recommendations for the future direction of U.S. policy.

This edited volume explores the past, present, and future of the Korean Peninsula, with special focus on South Korea, by connecting developments in politics with those in international relations and diplomacy. The book focuses on how South Korea’s politics and international relations have evolved since the founding of the First Republic in 1948, with particular attention to the period surrounding the 2022 presidential election. The authors provide new insights into Korean politics, including South Korean electoral reform and relations with China and Japan, North Korea’s nuclear capacity, and North–South diplomacy. Beginning with a commentary by Colin Crooks, Britain’s current Ambassador to South Korea and former Ambassador to North Korea, on recent British foreign policy changes and UK–Korea relations, this book will appeal to scholars and students of politics, international relations, diplomacy, and Korean Studies.

The Routledge Handbook of Korean Politics and Public Administration gathers the expertise of leading international scholars to survey the full spectrum of contemporary South Korean international relations, public management, and public policies. Divided into four parts, the handbook covers a range of issues including: domestic Korean political parties, elections and leadership, foreign policy, national security and relations with North Korea, public administration, governance and finance, and economic, social and environmental public policies. Offering a complete overview of the field, the handbook is an invaluable resource for academics, researchers, policy analysts, graduate and undergraduate students studying South Korean Politics and International Relations as well as East Asian Politics.

This controversial new study, breaks with the tradition of basing political studies on analyses of institutions and political personalities, by likening the Republic of Korea to a laboratory for the clash of political cultures. In the late 1940s, the Americans embarked upon a democratization programme designed to create a Western bulwark against the spread of communism in East Asia. The intervening years have seen the advent and demise of military rule, with South Korea now having a democratically-elected government. Although the US strategy thus seems successful, the political crises of 1995 in fact indicate that many obstacles remain here to the adoption of Western-style democracy. This study argues that socialization in general and political socialization in particular are key factors in any analysis of democracy, be it in Korea or elsewhere. Accordingly, the work draws on moral education textbooks, together with surveys and interviews among members of the urban intellectual elite. In this manner, the psychological roots of power and authority - key concepts to an understanding of 'good government' - are explored.

This book is the first comprehensive academic effort to examine the phenomenon of top female political leaders in Asia. It portrays prime ministers, presidents, and opposition leaders, but it is not a conventional biographical volume. Rather, it analyzes female politicians by means of case studies that are based on a common theoretical framework. The case studies were conducted over three years of field research, which included interviews with the female leaders themselves and members of their inner circle. Each chapter explores the similarities, but also points to the distinctiveness of each female leader, arising from political and social systems, cultural and religious conditions, and economic parameters. (Series: Political Science Perspectives / Politikwissenschaftliche Perspektiven - Vol. 16)

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1974.