24 May 2023
North Korea/South Korea: Who’s threatening who?
The prospect of using nuclear weapons to coerce behaviour has limits.
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12 May 2023
My decade watching the Korean peninsula: the delicacy of peace
Lessons from starting out a career analysing one of the most dangerous flashpoints in global politics. -
4 Apr 2023
North Korea keeps building more powerful weapons, with no end in sight
Diplomacy is desperately needed to avoid an irreversible escalation in nuclear capability and the excuse to use it. -
24 Mar 2023
North Korea: The state versus the people
If the regime is sincere about alleviating the latest food crisis, why ban market sales of foodstuffs? -
14 Mar 2023
Japan and South Korea: a logical but uneasy alignment
Is a compensation deal to right colonial-era wrongs part of a strategic shift towards rapprochement? -
7 Mar 2023
Why do we travel to unsettling places?
Whether the DMZ or sites of historic atrocities, place carries a connection to remind us of the precariousness of life. -
2 Mar 2023
North Korea remains a hermit even as food runs short
With a population cut off behind a border, Kim Jong-un sees ideology as the answer to warnings about empty plates. -
14 Feb 2023
Why North Korea is denying its involvement in Russia’s war in Ukraine
Pyongyang appears to be a reluctant participant in Putin’s brutal offensive in Eastern Europe. -
9 Feb 2023
With caution and tact: How Asian countries voted on Ukraine at the UN
A resolution forces nations to show their hand. After Russia’s invasion, consistency has not been to everyone’s liking. -
18 Jan 2023
“If the problem becomes more serious”: South Korea talks going nuclear
The high stakes on Korean Peninsula have quickly become even more acute in 2023. -
10 Jan 2023
The Korean Peninsula: Why 2023 will not be like 2017
“Fire and fury” had more to do with the temperament of the White House, while Pyongyang provokes with purpose. -
12 Dec 2022
North Korea’s “Take Your Daughter to Work Day” goes ballistic
Does the appearance of Kim Jong-un’s “beloved” middle child signal more than just succession planning? -
7 Dec 2022
All in the family: North Korea’s means of nuclear survivability
Kim Jong-un’s daughter reveal might be about keeping a trusted finger on the nuclear button more than succession plans. -
24 Nov 2022
Worth a thousand words: what Kim Jong‑un’s daughter photo tells
The leader’s strategy is long-term, both for the continued rule of North Korea and its nuclear ambition. -
11 Nov 2022
North Korea: unpredictably predictable
The rationale behind Pyongyang’s provocative missile launches may not be as menacing as it appears. -
4 Nov 2022
Solutions to the North Korea issue no longer include denuclearisation
A minimalist approach based on arms control, risk reduction and deterrence is what’s needed right now on the Peninsula. -
25 Oct 2022
The Korean Peninsula still poses major risks
Escalating tensions and vicious cycles. We’ve heard this story before. That doesn’t make the situation less dangerous. -
6 Oct 2022
Come what may, North Korea perseveres
No manner of sanctions appears to dent Pyongyang’s determination to remain solitary and nuclear armed. -
5 Oct 2022
Hot button issue: North Korea’s bold new nuclear stance
Regional leaders would do well to focus on engagement with Pyongyang after missile launches set a dangerous precedent. -
8 Sep 2022
Can Seoul and Tokyo mend ties?
Defence talks this week are a good sign. But a lot of history stands in the way of cooperation, even over North Korea. -
7 Sep 2022
North Korea’s politics defeats Covid … almost
In one of the world’s most isolated countries, there’s no escaping microbiology, even when you’re the Chairman. -
6 Sep 2022
China, Russia and North Korea: the wars that never end
A new book explores pride and defiance as weapons of history in the world’s socialist and autocratic bloc. -
10 Aug 2022
Russia and North Korea: never waste a good crisis
With the world focused on Ukraine, Taiwan and elsewhere, North Korea is making mischief and remains a threat. -
5 Aug 2022
Koreas: The hidden risk of the “kill chain”
South Korea's threat to pre-emptively decapitate the leadership in Pyongyang may drag the United States into a conflict. -
28 Jun 2022
Contingency plans: South Korea and cross-Strait security
Seoul’s new administration faces critical choices over Taiwan and its relationships with Washington and Beijing. -
27 Jun 2022
Patiently waiting for North Korea’s next nuclear test
Any countdown could depend on what Beijing is willing to tolerate. -
8 Jun 2022
The Pyongyang problem for the Quad
North Korea poses a challenge for regional security, and so often China has stood to benefit from such instability. -
20 May 2022
Lies, damn lies, and North Korea’s Covid statistics
Why has Pyongyang suddenly fessed up to an outbreak after years of insisting the virus has been held completely at bay? -
4 May 2022
For North Korea, military parades come before the people’s wellbeing
There is no mask over the regime’s true intentions. -
13 Apr 2022
Bellicose or bluster? How South Koreans see the North’s nuclear threat
The policy of a new president in Seoul depends not only on Pyongyang but also South Korean public perceptions. -
30 Mar 2022
Why now? The timing of North Korea’s ICBM test
History has an alarming habit of repeating on the Korean peninsula. -
22 Mar 2022
Waiting for North Korea to escalate
With Pyongyang ramping up its missile testing, it’s unclear whether they’re looking for a deal or a provocation. -
10 Jan 2022
Koreas: A tale of two Olympics
Moon Jae-in won’t finish his presidency with the podium finish he’d dreamed of four years ago. -
2 Dec 2021
Honouring the dead on the path to Korean peace
Recovering troop remains and negotiating denuclearisation are vital to end-of-war declarations on the Korean peninsula. -
25 Nov 2021
North Korea: Law, but not as we know it
Authoritarian leaders do not allow the final supremacy of courts but even a patina of legal function helps cement rule. -
6 Oct 2021
With Biden’s lukewarm diplomacy, North Korea runs hot and cold
The vague North Korea policy from the White House has left all parties unsure what the United States hopes to achieve. -
16 Sep 2021
North Korea’s calculated restraint
Pyongyang is giving Washington a taste of its own “strategic patience” medicine. -
19 Aug 2021
North Korea calling
The hotline between Pyongyang and Seoul is operational again despite irritation at joint US military ops in the region. -
30 Jul 2021
Why China and North Korea decided to renew a 60-year-old treaty
Mutual interests abound in a win-win for the alliance of single-party states. -
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24 Jun 2021
North Korea: The long-awaited fallout of summit diplomacy
Pyongyang is hinting at talks. But only at a price. And history shows it will then ask for more. -
3 Jun 2021
Moon’s last, best chance after Biden summit
The South Korean president came to Washington for vaccine supplies and to shore up a legacy for North Korea engagement. -
24 May 2021
“Flexible” is the new North Korea policy buzzword
A responsive approach has clear benefits, but Washington and Seoul must be careful not to fall out of line. -
11 May 2021
Biden’s North Korea review is a diplomatic victory for Moon Jae-in
South Korea’s president has won the new administration in Washington over to his way of thinking. -
6 May 2021
Biden’s North Korea plans come into view
Short on details, the US president’s policy positions still leave plenty of room for speculation. -
5 May 2021
Is North Korea expertise all talk?
The debate around understanding one of the world’s most reclusive nations centres on the question of language. -
16 Apr 2021
South Korea on North Korea: Keep on keeping on
Moon Jae-in wants diplomacy to work with Kim Jong-un and is determined to push ahead. -
14 Apr 2021
With Olympic snub, North Korea returns to isolation
Pyongyang’s decision to skip the Tokyo games is part of a broader retreat back to the international wilderness. -
22 Mar 2021
North Korea and Malaysia’s predictable diplomatic divorce
Pyongyang is sending a message in typically overbearing style. But the target is as much the US as it is Malaysia. -
16 Mar 2021
Troubles ahead for the US–South Korea alliance
Biden’s efforts to nudge Seoul into the Quad may be self-defeating unless Moon Jae-in’s North Korea hopes are engaged.