Park Ju-jin Researcher Yonsei Institute for North Korean Studies Issue Brief #54 On July 24 2015, Don Oberdofer, an American expert on the Korean Peninsula and a professor at Johns Hopkins University, passed away at age 84. His book, “The Two Koreas”, published in 2000, provides an in-depth analysis of the historical background leading up to the division of Korea, as well as the competitive tension and confrontations that followed. It is considered a must-read for those studying Inter-Korean relations. In his book, he states that the Korean Peninsula has dramatic, inspiring moments, and powerful changes ahead – unpredictable changes we must be ready for, suggesting a positive shift in the dy
Hur Jae-young Researcher Yonsei Institute for North Korean Studies Issue Brief # 53 This year, Korea celebrates 70 years of independence. During this time of reflection, our society continues to make an effort in finding parallels between Germany, which was divided until 1990, and the present-day Korean Peninsula. Yet many seem to overlook the fact that the circumstances for Germany were substantially different to the current split between the two Koreas. Economic factors cannot be ignored when comparing the two cases. When Germany was unified in 1990, the GDP per capita for West Germany was estimated to be only about twice as large as that of East Germany. South Korea’s GDP per capita today
