NORTH KOREAN STUDIES
EVENTS
Upcoming Events
[Webcast] "North Korea Crisis Management: Insight Into the Efforts in War"
March 17, 2021, 22:30 pm UTC+9
This event is hosted by the LSESU United Nations Society. The description is as follows:
“When hearing the word crisis, buzzing alarms, red lights, and panic are things that we imagine. In reality, most crises are hidden and innate in a society like a bomb on fire ready to explode. For civilians, the urgent decision-making process is rarely visible, and the gravity of crisis cannot be fully communicated. To provide insight into international crisis management, the LSESU UN Society has selected North Korea as a case study. The nation’s threat of developing and utilizing nuclear weapons has grown the tension in global politics since 1953 after the Korean War. Looking at the conflict through the experiences of diplomats and human rights activists, this event will shed a new perspective on the career of crisis management and diplomacy. For this event, we are honored to be hosting Ambassador Oh Joon, who was the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Republic of Korea to the United Nations in New York, and Mr Sokeel Park MBE who is the South Korea Country Director of Liberty in North Korea (LiNK).”
[Webcast] The Historical Causes of Korea's Division and Challenges to Reconciliation
March 18, 2021, 12:00 pm EDT to 1:00 pm EDT
Michael D. Shin, a Fellow of Robinson College, Cambridge, looks at the late Joseon period and the Japanese colonial period to examine the historical causes of Korean division and investigate their impact on inter-Korean reconciliation in this program supported by the UniKorea Foundation. Understanding the deep historical causes of Korean division sheds light on the persistence of the division after the end of the Cold War.
[Webcast] "Unravelling the Mental Health of North Korean Refugees Panel"
March 19, 2021, 7:00 am UTC+9
Register through: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfkblLD515gk_DGp-2CdMip9JOYhUYjN2PHSDzebezBfbnRKQ/viewform
This event is hosted by HanVoice Waterlook, and the description is as follows:
“Come join HanVoice Waterloo for a panel discussion and Q&A on mental health and North Korean refugees at our "Unraveling the Mental Health of North Korean Refugees" event. We will be looking at the mental health journey of these Refugees and the ways in which we can support them.”
[Webcast] "Authoritarianism and Development in North Korea Academic Panel"
March 20, 2021, 5:00 pm EST to 8:00 pm EST
This event is hosted by the Han Voice UToronto, and the description is as follows:
“We are excited to announce that on March 19, Han Voice UToronto will be hosting an academic panel on ‘Authoritarianism and Development in North Korea’ from 5:00 - 8:00 PM EST. The event will aim to generate a conversation on the role that authoritarianism plays in a country like North Korea, which has been ranked consistently at the bottom of several International indexes that measure freedom and democracy (Index of Economic Freedom, Democracy Index, Freedom in the World to name a few). How does this impact North Korea’s Development? What effect does this authoritarianism have on the country’s economic system? Our group of panelists from several fields of expertise aim to provide an insightful discussion on the topic. Join the discussion with your questions, and contribute to the conversation about North Korea.”
[Webcast] "The Unworthy, Worthwhile War: Korea, 1950-1953"
March 23, 2021, 18:30 pm GMT
Website: https://www.nam.ac.uk/whats-on/unworthy-worthwhile-war-korea-1950-53-lecture-13
Available for National Army Museum members only.
Dr Chris Parry will talk about the strategic background to the Korean crisis and the context within which major powers, the United States, China, Russia and Britain, became involved. He will explain why the Labour administration of Clement Attlee decided to commit British forces, despite widespread war-weariness, concerns about the security of western Europe and a difficult emergence from austerity.
At first, the British Chiefs of Staff were reluctant to commit ground forces from Germany, Malaya and Hong Kong, but, as the situation deteriorated, the government decided that the political benefits of doing so (not least the effect on American strategic choices and public opinion) outweighed the military disadvantages.
He will outline the main features and phases of the war and highlight the distinctive contribution of British forces, notably the invasion of South Korea by North Korea in June 1950; the initial deployments by the United Nations; the Inchon landings and the defeat of the North Korean forces in October 1950. He will then describe the decisive intervention by China, leading to the battle of the Imjin River and the eventual stabilization of the front around the 38th parallel in May 1951, although with continued fierce fighting for two more years while negotiations took place that led to an armistice in July 1953.
Chris will also review the lessons from the war and the difficulties of operating as a junior partner in a US-led coalition. He will describe how the war was reported in Britain, the effects of the intervention on political attitudes and its influence on subsequent events. He will show how echoes from the war persist right up to the present day and into the future.
[Panel discussion] Peacebuilding on the Korean Peninsula: U.S. and European Perspectives
Hosted by: The United States Institute of Peace Asia Center
Date: March 24, 2021, 11:00am EDT to 12:00pm EDT
How can the two Koreas move towards establishing a sustainable peacebuilding process? Are they in the driver’s seat or are other external factors dictating the process? How can the international community contribute to the peace process? Please join USIP and the Centre for Security, Diplomacy and Strategy at the Brussels School of Governance for a panel discussion looking at U.S. and European perspectives on achieving peace and reconciliation on the Korean Peninsula—and whether similar processes in other regions provide any helpful lessons.
Registration:
[Podcast] "The democratization process in the Korean peninsula"
March 24, 2021
Website : https://audioblog.arteradio.com/blog/150786/radio-tangun
This podcast is hosted by Radio Tangun, a program dedicated to topics related to North and South Korean studies. This month's episode will focus on the democratization and peace process in the Korean Peninsula, and the inter-korean relations throughout this process, including the sunshine policy lead by Kim Dae Jung between 1998 and 2008.
[Webcast] "Transition to Peace on the Korean Peninsula"
March 25, 2021, 13:00 pm GMT to 14:30 pm GMT
Mount Kumkang, one of the most famous scenic areas of the Korean peninsula, has, in recent years, become a symbol of the on - off cooperation between the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) and the Republic of Korea (South Korea).
We would like to consider what confidence building measures could initiate a transition to peace at a time of sanctions and the suspicion that any resources gained by the DPRK will be used to support the DPRK military, nuclear weapons and their delivery systems?
'Who can guide the process' is pertinent given that the shifts of democratic mandate may lead to a President of the United States or a President of South Korea, for example, who may withdraw from any prior agreements made by a previous administration. Who can guide any peace initiative into a longstanding agreement in which all parties can have assurance?
[Webcast] "Gardens of North Korea - Zoom talk by Neil Miller (Perennial)"
March 29, 2021, 19:00 pm GMT to 20:30 pm GMT
Website: https://www.nnhs.org.uk/event/gardens-of-north-korea-zoom-talk-by-neil-miller-perennial/
This event is hosted by the Norfolk & Norwich Horticultural Society, and the description is as follows:
“An on-line talk using Zoom. All members and affiliated society members invited to attend. Neil Miller will take us on a tour of the gardens of North Korea. This talk has been organized through Perennial - Gardeners' Royal Benevolent Society.”
[Webcast] Fear and Insecurity: Addressing North Korean Threat Perceptions
Hosted by: The Institute of World Politics
Date: April 14, 2021, 4:00 pm EDT to 5:30 pm EDT
Information: Diplomacy with North Korea must factor in an understanding of the Kim regime’s fears and insecurity. Pyongyang’s military actions and negotiating gambits jeopardize the United States, South Korea, and other nations’ vital interests and policy goals. Accordingly, the study of North Korean threat perceptions—how Kim Jong-un thinks about the utility of force and about threats to his regime—is essential for averting strategic surprise and buttressing diplomacy. Dr. Cronin will address North Korean threat perceptions by examining the ruling elite’s basic instincts of fear and insecurity. Drawing on the more than seven-decade of war and cold war on the Korean peninsula, he will offer constructive ideas for diplomacy, crisis management, and security policy.
Registration:
[Webcast] Role of Regional Players in Inter-Korean Peace and Unification
Hosted by: The Korea Society
Date: April 16, 2021, 12:00 pm EDT to 3:00 pm EDT
Information: Columbia University adjunct assistant professor Katrin Fraser Katz and Carnegie Endowment for International Peace senior research analyst Kathryn Botto join senior director Stephen Noerper for a discussion on regional roles in building inter-Korean peace and unification. Policy director Jonathan Corrado moderates audience questions in this program, supported by the UniKorea Foundation.
Registration:
[Webcast] "K-Culture in the Context of Inter-Korean Relations"
April 27, 2021, 13:00 pm GMT to 15:00 pm GMT
Moderated by Dr. Ed Griffith (University of Central Lancashire, UK).