south korea — 9DASHLINE

The Kim-Putin summit: thrusting Russia-US tensions into Northeast Asia

Written by Anthony V. Rinna

From a longer-term perspective, the summit between Kim and Putin could also thrust Moscow-Washington tensions into the Asia-Pacific in ways not seen since the Cold War.

NATO’s future in the Indo-Pacific: Tilt or jilt?

Written by Mathieu Droin

The limitations of what NATO can offer or execute in the Indo-Pacific raise the question of whether there may be other more appropriate frameworks to publicly tackle shared security challenges between the Euro-Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific.

Europe and the Indo-Pacific9DLSeptember 8, 20239DashLine, NATO’s future in the Indo-Pacific: Tilt or jilt?, Mathieu Droin, NATO, Indo-Pacific, Europe, Chinese Foreign Ministry, NATO Summit, Lithuania, AP4, Australia, Japan, New Zealand, south korea, transatlandopacific, alliance, hegemon, NATO’s partnership, NATO partnerships, Allies, Vilnius Summit Communiqué, dialogue, Washington DC, People’s Republic of China (PRC), NATO’s agenda, NATO’s 2022 Strategic Concept, Euro-Atlantic security, military alliance, legacy of the Cold War, Cold War, blocs, bloc building, NATO’s Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, United Kingdom, Indo-Pacific tilt, 2021 Integrated Review, France, AUKUS, AUKUS crisis, Paris, President Macron, Emmanuel Macron, NATO’s global partnerships, Canada, Denmark, Western Europe, Germany, Italy, North Korea, Russia, Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, NATO liaison office, NATO International Staff, President Yoon Suk-yeol, Five Eyes intelligence alliance, Five Eyes, India, New Delhi, Indonesia, honest broker, Jakarta, Non-alignment, Association of Southeast Asia Nations (ASEAN), Philippines, Myanmar, pro-China, pro-US, critical infrastructure, telecommunications, port facilities, military threat, no limits partnership, Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, autocratic, Russo-Chinese alignment, Moscow, military posture, deter, deterrence, historical revisionism, spheres of influence, NATO’s eastward expansion, the West, Georgia, 2008 Bucharest Summit, Ukraine, Beijing, Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, Individually Tailored Partnership Programs (ITPP), cybersecurity, interoperability, Article 5, Ukrainian Armed Forces, Sanctions, humanitarian aid, European Union, Ramstein Group, G7, Taiwan Strait, Senkaku Islands, contingency, signalling, Eastern flank, trade, foreign direct investments, Brussels, anti-coercion instrument, critical raw materials, Sweden, EU Indo-Pacific Forum, Strategic Partnership, systemic rival, de-risking, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, leverage, Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, Quad, Global Combat Air Programme, Franco-Indian-UAE initiative, UAE, flexilateral

In Brief with James Crabtree Executive Director IISS-Asia

This week, 9DASHLINE had the opportunity to speak with James Crabtree, Executive Director of the International Institute for Strategic Studies-Asia (IISS).

In Brief9DLJuly 24, 20239dashline, James Crabtree, International Institute for Strategic Studies-Asia, IISS, Asia, security dynamics, Indo-Pacific, Shangri-La Dialogue, India, New Delhi, international order, aspirant great powers, global order, China, US-China, Blinken, US-China relations, Janet Yellen, G20, APEC, Xi Jinping, semiconductor export restrictions, Singapore, Heng Swee Keat, Little Red Dot, economic ties, security partnership, great power rivalry, superpower rivalry, Lee Hsien Loong, Singapore military, Indonesia, North Korea, south korea, Pakistan, joint naval exercises, great broker, Southeast Asia, Joko Widodo, Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, Kiev, inward investment, power projection, ASEAN, South Natuna Sea, regional security cooperation, joint drills, Myanmar, Sino-US competition, minilateral groupings, Quad, pan-regional security, Track-I, In Brief with James Crabtree Executive Director IISS-Asia

Forum: The G7 Hiroshima Summit

9DASHLINE asks a select group of experts to assess the outcomes from the recent G7 Summit held in Japan.

Editor's Picks9DLMay 25, 20239dashline, Forum: The G7 Summit, G7, DR SEBASTIAN MASLOW, ELISABETH WINTER, DR ZSUZSA ANNA FERENCZY, Hiroshima Summit, India, Japan, south korea, Russia, Ukraine, China, diplomatic leadership, Hiroshima, Fumio Kishida, nuclear nonproliferation, disarmament, Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, Volodymyr Zelensky, Zelenskyy, Russia-Ukraine war, Tokyo, Global South, Indonesia, Brazil, Indo-Pacific, regional security concerns, rules-based liberal international order, de-risking, de-coupling, geostrategic rebalancing, economic security, economic resilience, decoupling, national security, global supply chains, weaponised interdependence, coordination platform on economic coercion, free international order, Ursula von der Leyen, European Commission, EU, beijing, Taiwan, Taiwan Strait, People’s Republic of China, international community, G7 Leaders’ Statement on Ukraine, 12-point Ukraine peace plan, international sanctions, Leader’s Statement on Economic Resilience and Economic Security, defensive trade countermeasures

Post-INF Indo-Pacific: The strategic potential of US-Philippines cooperation

Written by Rupert Schulenburg

A rotational deployment of US ground-based anti-ship missiles to Philippine bases would constitute a major deepening of US-Philippines defence cooperation and could bolster regional deterrence.

East Asia9DLMay 18, 20239dashline, Post-INF Indo-Pacific: The strategic potential of US-Philippines cooperation, RUPERT SCHULENBURG, The Philippines, China, indo-pacific, US, US military primacy, navy, US military bases, Taiwan, military capabilities, US force posture, Taiwan contingency, US-Philippines defence cooperation, regional deterrence, US-Philippines, defence cooperation, anti-ship missile system, Manila, weapons systems, conventional missile strike volume, land-based nuclear forces, precision-strike missiles, Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty, Trump administration, Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, INF, Russia, Mark Esper, south korea, Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, THAAD, Beijing, economic boycott, conventional weapons, land-attack capability, missile-hosting nations, nuclear escalation, Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, EDCA, Typhon Weapon System, TWS, Tomahawk cruise missile, US army, Block Va, naval targets, Cesar Basa Air Base, Luzon, Antonio Bautista Air Base, Palawan, Taiwan Strait, short-range ballistic missile rounds, medium-range ballistic missile, launcher, Okinawa, missile batteries, strike volume, DF-26, Guam, surface combatants, amphibious assault ships, 2+2 ministerial dialogue, 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue, Marcos Jr., Philippine sea, joint patrols, South China Sea, intelligence-sharing framework, joint jet fighter exercises, Bilateral Defense Guidelines, missile-hosting agreement, Post-INF Indo-Pacific: The strategic potential of US-Philippines cooperation, Rupert Schulenburg, Philippines, United States, South Korea, Japan, Indo-Pacific, Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, RAND Corporation, Rodrigo Duterte

'Thawing' between Seoul and Tokyo — A false spring?

Written by Kevin Gray

The apparent ‘thaw’ of Korea-Japan relations is likely to be a ‘false spring’ rather than a genuine new era of bilateral relations and broader regional cooperation.

East Asia9DLApril 7, 20239dashline, 'Thawing' between Seoul and Tokyo - a false spring?, south korea, Yoon Suk-yeol, japan, Fumio Kishida, diplomatic relations, wartime forced labour, bilateral relations, Korean Supreme Court, Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Corporation, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Korean families, WW2, forced labour, Kevin Gray, compensation for victims, financial compensation, export restrictions, key chemical exports, semiconductors, public outrage, Japanese goods, bilateral cooperation, regional ramifications, trilateral Japan-South Korea-US cooperation, China, North Korea, Japan-South Korea-US cooperation, Washington, trilateral alliance, security realm, military intelligence-sharing pact, Biden administration, Seoul, Anthony Blinken, ROK, allies, reconciliation, colonised country, colonising country, historical animosities., Park Jin, Foreign Minister Park Jin, Tokyo, apologies, wartime sexual slavery, Shinzo Abe, Japanese history textbooks, Japanese war crimes, colonial history, comfort women, 2015 ‘comfort women’ agreement, comfort women statues, grievances, geopolitical imperatives, decolonisation, Cold War imperatives, 1965 Treaty of Basic Relations, Park Chung-hee, developmental drive, popular protests, private claims for compensation, historical injustices, Park Geun-hye, Moon Jae-in, candlelight revolution, Democratic Party, Yoon government, Dokdo/Takeshima, 'Thawing' between Seoul and Tokyo — a false spring?, 'THAWING' BETWEEN SEOUL AND TOKYO — A FALSE SPRING?

Seoul’s Indo-Pacific strategy will not make big waves in Southeast Asia

Written by Alessandro Vesprini and Matteo Piasentini

The best option for South Korea is to double down on diplomacy, economic ties, and military sales, as well as tighten the dialogue with like-minded middle powers in the region.

East Asia9DLFebruary 28, 20239dashline, Seoul’s Indo-Pacific strategy will not make big waves in Southeast Asia, Alessandro Vesprini, Matteo Piasentini, Seoul, south korea, Southeast Asia, 23rd Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ROK, ASEAN summit, ASEAN-ROK summit, Strategy for a Free, Peaceful, and Prosperous Indo-Pacific Region, Indo-Pacific, Yoon, Yoon Suk-yeol, rules-based order, New Southern Policy, Moon Jae-in, China, Korea-ASEAN Solidarity Initiative, KASI, ASEAN Member States, ASMs, Indo-Pacific Strategy, rules-based international order, United States, US, Beijing, People, Prosperity, and Peace, NSP Plus, economic cooperation, bilateral relationships, principles of cooperation, Inclusiveness, Trust, and Reciprocity, building regional order, rule of law, human rights, non-proliferation, counter-terrorism, security cooperation, security and defence, Mekong-ROK, New Northern Policy, Pyongyang, strategic partnerships, multilateral trade deals, Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, Asia Power Index, ASEAN Outlook on Indo-Pacific, AOIP, mechanisms of conflict management, 2022 ASEAN Summit, South China Sea, Global Pivotal Power, military capabilities, strategic constraints, security dialogue initiatives, autonomous foreign policy, US-China competition, North Korea, inter-Korean relations, soft power

2023: The future of the QUAD in the Indo-Pacific

As a reinvigorated Quad steps up its engagement, some observers have called for the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue to establish a permanent presence in the Indo-Pacific via a standing maritime force. But how viable is this idea?

Pacific9DLJanuary 11, 20239dashline, The future of the QUAD in the Indo-Pacific, Quad, Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, standing maritime force, Blake Herzinger, United States, military, vaccination, supply chains, climate, maritime security, Maritime Domain Awareness initiative, Quad vaccine partnership, Beijing, China, Australia, India, Japan, Horn of Africa, military alliance, Indian Ocean, New Delhi, South or East China Seas, East China Seas, South China Sea, navy, Combined Task Force (CTF) 151, Gulf of Aden, maritime trade, geoeconomic, Pacific islands, Canberra, Pacific arc, Retired US Admiral Gary Roughead, Pentagon, Washington, defence planning, sea control, Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, Free and Open Indo-Pacific, Indo-Pacific, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Russia, Ukraine, rule of law, sovereignty, territorial integrity, freedom of navigation and overflight, Quad Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief meeting, Asian NATO, Quad Leaders’ Meeting, Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness, Oceania, Southeast Asia, Taiwan Straits, Korean peninsula, ASEAN, Canada, south korea, Taiwan

Attentive friends, busy enemies, and a bright future — 2023 for North Korea

Written by Benedikt Staar

North Korean politics are strongly influenced by the regime’s friends, its enemies, and its own ambitions. As it turns out, things look promising for Pyongyang on all three fronts.

Best of 2022: The Indo-Pacific

Take this opportunity to review some of our most-read analyses from the past year on the evolving strategies of several countries toward the Indo-Pacific.

Faultlines9DLJanuary 2, 2023Preparing for a crowded Indo-Pacific: where to next?, Gabriele Abbondanza, Korea, indonesia, Australia, South Korea, Europe, indo-pacific, Is South Korea’s new Indo-Pacific strategy finally forthcoming?, Wongi Choe, Moon Jae-in, south korea, japan, australia, Elli Pohlkamp, Elli-Katharina Pohlkamp, Tokyo, Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, Free and Open Indo-Pacific, United States, China, Christiane Heidbrink, Putin, Germany, Scholz, Bundeswehr, Asia-Pacific, France, Rafael Loss, Elisabeth I-Mi Suh, Hamburg Institute for Peace Research, Berlin, The Bundeswehr in the Indo-Pacific, German Council on Foreign Relations, DGAP, The fate of the Indo-Pacific: Lessons from Ukraine and US diplomacy towards Taiwan, Reuben Steff, Martin Jirušek, US, Taiwan, The US should prioritise the Indo-Pacific over Ukraine, Aine Cooke

The Bundeswehr in the Indo-Pacific

Written by Rafael Loss and Elisabeth I-Mi Suh

Adopting a rather transactional take and framing the Bundeswehr’s regional engagement in the context of Washington’s focus on China is not wrong, but it is short-sighted.

Europe and the Indo-Pacific9DLDecember 1, 20229DashLine, The Bundeswehr in the Indo-Pacific, Rafael Loss, Betty Suh, Elisabeth I-Mi Suh, Bundeswehr, Indo-Pacific, Germany, Berlin, diplomacy, German federal armed forces, armed forces, joint exercises, NATO, NATO allies, Australia, China, military posture, National Security Strategy, China Strategy, German frigate Bayern, German Navy, navy, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, Eberhard Zorn, Pakistan, Guam, Japan, south korea, Singapore, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, India, South China Sea, innocent passage, Taiwan Strait, Beijing, Shanghai, German Air Force, Eurofighter, jets, transporters, tankers, Rapid Pacific, Pitch Black air combat exercise, Kakadu maritime combat exercise, F-35 stealth aircraft, F-35, Talisman Saber, United States, NATO sumiit, Nato Summit, NATO Strategic Concept, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, New Zealand, cyber, cyber defence, maritime security, climate change, Disinformation, hybrid threats, Canberra, Tokio, Tokyo, Enhanced Opportunity Partner, Multilateralism, Asia-Pacific, deterrence, Taiwan, North Korea, missile tests, Rheinmetall, Russia, Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy, People's Liberation Army, Russian Navy, authoritarian revisionism, White House

Seoul cannot have a credible Indo-Pacific strategy without Taiwan

Written by Zsuzsa Anna Ferenczy and Tereza Novotna

Much of this is also about how far Seoul will be prepared to join many of its partners in working with Taiwan. In other words, if South Korea wants to play a bigger role in the Indo-Pacific, it is high time that Seoul joins the ‘Taiwan club’.

East Asia9DLSeptember 9, 20229DashLine, Zsuzsa Anna Ferenczy, Tereza Novotna, Seoul cannot have a credible Indo-Pacific strategy without Taiwan, Republic of Korea, south korea, China, PRC, Taiwan, japan, Shinzo Abe, USA, Yoon Suk-yeol, semiconductors, Nancy Pelosi, Indo-Pacific, Beijing, Seoul, Taiwan Strait, Tokyo, middle power, Security, Washington, Park Jin, india, Australia, defence, Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, EU, Brussels, European Parliament, Covid, Global Cooperation and Training Framework, GCTF, Taipei, quad, Nobuo Kishi, US-Japan Security Consultative Committee, Supply Chain Resilience Initiative, Pelosi, People’s Republic of China, Korea, South Korea, Japan, India, COVID, COVID19, Taiwan Model, Europe, Xi Jinping, hybrid warfare, cyberattacks, THAAD, Quad, Quaderateral Security Dialogue, SCRI, Delhi, Taiwan Club, Russia, Ukraine

Cyberspace and the DPRK: Evolving cyber strategy

Written by Abhishek Sharma

The DPRK’s targeting of US public and private organisations shows how far it will go to challenge the US. The (geo)political divide in technology will only make it more problematic.

East Asia9DLSeptember 2, 20229DASHLINE, Cyberspace and the DPRK: evolving cyber strategy, Abhishek Sharma, North Korea, DPRK, Nuclear weapons, south korea, US, US-ROK, united states, Korea, South Korea, Pyongyang, cyber, cyberspace, cyberattacks, cybercrime, Cyber warfare, Cyber attack, cybersecurity, Cyber, Cyber Attacks, juche, cyber capabilities, Japan, military, cyber operation, byungjin, Kim Jong-un, Kim Il-sung, Kim Jong-il, spying, Surveillance, espionage, sanctions, Cyber Warfare Guidance Unit (Bureau 121), Lazarus Group, Lazarus, non-state actors, technology, cyber strategy, Russia, China, computer, Northeast Asia, Sony Pictures Entertainment, cyber warriors, Sony, Bangladesh Central Bank, hacker, hackers, hack, FBI, crypto, cryptocurrency, Chainanalysis, blockchain, data, Data theft, Bithumb, KuCoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin, Axie Infinity, US Department of Treasury, Tornado Cash, UN Sanctions Panel Committee on North Korea, Intelligence, US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, cyber threats, R.O.K., Anne Neuberger, Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technology, ROK-US Working Group Meeting on the DPRK Cyber Threat, Budapest Convention, allies, bilateral, minilateral, multilateral

South Korea eyes Europe for its future

Written by Eunwoo Lee

South Korea, whose external engagement has so far revolved around the intractable security stances of the US and China, can surely hedge its security interests by embracing Europe.

Branding is the Quad’s biggest problem

Written by Hayley Channer and Ella Parker

Importantly, labelling additional members as ‘plus’ countries automatically relegates them to a lower status than full-membership countries, creating the impression that they are add-ons rather than equal partners.

Pacific9DLAugust 30, 2021china, indo-pacific, quad, quadrilateral security initiative, south korea, japan, australia, india, united states, exercise malabar, pacific, asean, vietnam, new zealand