The North Korea-Russia Alliance and Geopolitics of East Asia

Speaker's Summary:
The signing of the North Korea-Russia alliance treaty by Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un on June 19 this year was a geopolitical earthquake which will have far-reaching consequences, not only for peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula and East Asia but also for security dynamics of the wider Eurasian continent.

Ambassador Chun Yungwoo, who served as National Security Advisor to former South Korea President Lee Myungbak, will share his insights on what motivated Kim Jong Un to go all in for Russia and its war against Ukraine, which culminated in the latest deployment of North Korean troops to Russia. He will also discuss how the emerging axis of the world’s two most isolated leaders will affect the strategic interests of the major stakeholders; and what options are available for the ROK-US alliance and the ROK-US-Japan trilateral security cooperation framework in response to new challenges presented by the Russia-North Korea alliance and China-Russia ‘no limits’ strategic partnership.

The views expressed are those of the speaker and do not necessarily reflect East-West Center policies or positions.

About the Speaker:
Ambassador Chun Yungwoo is chairman and founder of the Korean Peninsula Future Forum (KPFF), a think tank with a particular focus on national security issues. He is also a columnist for The Chosun Ilbo.

Chun served as the National Security Advisor to South Korea President Lee Myung-Bak from October 2010 to February 2013. Before his appointment to the Office of the President, he had been a career diplomat for 33 years. He served in key posts at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including as the Second Vice Foreign Minister (October 2009-October 2010), Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs, Head of the ROK Delegation to the Six-Party Talks (February 2006-April 2008), and Deputy Foreign Minister for Policy Planning and International Organizations (January 2005-April 2006). His senior overseas assignments include Ambassador to the United Kingdom (May 2008-November 2009) and Ambassador/Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN in New York (June 2003-January 2005).

Ambassador Chun graduated from Pusan National University with a BA in 1977 and received a Master of International Affairs from the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University in 1994. He authored a book titled “The President’s Foreign and National Security Policy Agenda” in 2022 (published in Korean).

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