1st Edition

The Korean Peninsula and Indo-Pacific Power Politics Status Security at Stake

Edited By Jagannath P. Panda Copyright 2020
    300 Pages
    by Routledge

    300 Pages
    by Routledge

    This book assesses the strategic linkages that the Korean Peninsula shares with the Indo-Pacific and provides a succinct picture of issues which will shape the trajectory of the Korean Peninsula in the future.

    This book analyses how critical actors such as the United States, China, Russia and Japan are caught in a tightly balanced power struggle affecting the Korean Peninsula. It shows how these countries are exerting control over the Korean Peninsula while also holding on to their status as critical actors in the broader Indo-Pacific. The prospects of peace, stability and unity in the Korean Peninsula and the impact of this on Indo-Pacific power politics are explored as well as the contending and competing interests in the region. Chapters present country-specific positions and approaches as case studies and review the impact of power politics on stakeholders’ relationships in the Indo-Pacific. The book also argues that the Korean Peninsula and the issue of denuclearization is of primary importance to any direction an Indo-Pacific Partnership may take.

    Bringing together scholars, journalists and ex-diplomats, this book will be of interest to academics working in the field of international relations, foreign policy, security studies and Asian studies as well as audiences interested

    Introduction

    Jagannath P. Panda

    Part 1: Critical Perspectives

    1. America's Conflicted Strategy for the Korean Peninsula: From "Fire and Fury" to "Denuclearization"

    Donald Kirk

    2. China’s Relations with North Korea: Surmounting the "Great Wall"

    Anurag Vishwanath

    3. Japan’s Security Pledge in the Korean Peninsula

    Kohtaro Ito

    4. The Twists and Turns of Russia’s Relations with North Korea

    Georgy Bulychev & Valeriia Gorbacheva

    Part 2: Contending Perspectives

    5. Denuclearization and Peace Regime on the Korean Peninsula: Perspectives of the Two Koreas

    Jina Kim

    6. Korean Peninsula and the Evolving Sino-US Strategic Stability in the Indo-Pacific

    Kuyoun Chung

    7. DPRK’s Proliferation Activities and the Denuclearization Talks: Security in the Indo-Pacific and Beyond

    Lami Kim

    8. Russia and the Two Koreas, Archana Upadhyay 9. Mongolia and the Northeast Asian Peace Process

    Alicia Campi

    10. India and the Korean Peninsula: Between Dialogue, Diplomacy and Denuclearization

    Jagannath P. Panda & Mrittika Guha Sarkar

    Part 3: Competing and Cooperating Perspectives

    11. Unification of Koreas and North Korea’s Changing Political System: Models and Movements

    Jin Shin

    12. Negotiating Mechanisms in the Korean Peninsula: What Has Worked? Any Lessons for the Indo-Pacific

    Manpreet Sethi

    13. Geoeconomics of the Indo-Pacific: Competing Economic Architectures and South Korea

    Seounjou Kang

    14. Between Security and Insecurity: Resource Politics in Northeast Asia

    Atmaja Gohain Baruah

    Biography

    Jagannath P. Panda is a Research Fellow and Centre Coordinator for East Asia at the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, India. An expert on China, Indo-Pacific and East Asian affairs, he is the series editor for Routledge Studies on Think Asia.

    This is a smart and timely contribution on a key dimension of Asia’s geopolitics. Dr. Panda, one of India’s foremost scholars of East Asia, has assembled an excellent group of analysts to probe the place of the Korean Peninsula in a dynamic and fast-changing region. This volume will make for essential reading for anyone interested in contemporary Asia, and in international relations on the whole. - Michael Kugelman, Deputy Director, Asia Program, Woodrow Wilson Centre for International Scholars, Washington DC

     

    Brings India back in, on Asia-wide issues where its perspective is very much needed. The editor assembles a fine group of scholars from throughout the continent and beyond. Creative, original theme and high-quality papers.

    Kent E. Calder, Director, Edwin O. Reischauer Center for East Asian Studies, John Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, Washington DC.

     

    The Korean Peninsula have overlooked the space for many potential regional actors for long. However, the changing power dynamics post the DPRK-US bilateral summits has allowed many regional actors to step in and aim to play different roles in the region. This book fills a very interesting research gap, particularly as the Indo-Pacific region has not been addressed as a third-party actor in the Korean Peninsula sufficiently. Therefore, this book makes a very relevant contribution to a dynamic and potentially unstable region of the world. - Niklas Swanstrom, Director, Institute for Security and Development Policy, Sweden.

     

    This is a magnificently comprehensive volume on a topic of vital importance. The diverse chapters are accessible to general readers but will also provide unique insights to experts. Highly recommended. - Richard Weitz, Senior Fellow and Director, Center for Political-Military Analysis, Hudson Institute, Washington DC

     

    This volume provides keen insight into the Korean Peninsula's role in shaping Northeast Asia and the Indo-Pacific's emerging dynamics. Through linking peninsula security and diplomatic dynamics to broader geopolitical trends in the Indo-Pacific, the contributors to this volume have demonstrated that the Korean Peninsula is an important stakeholder in contributing to stability, security, and a rules-based order in the region. - Stephen R. Nagy, Senior Associate Professor, International Christian University, Japan, & Distinguished Fellow, Asia-Pacific Foundation, Canada.

     

    In his edited volume The Korean Peninsula and Indo-Pacific Power Politics: Status Security at Stake Dr. Jagannath P. Panda has compiled chapters of immediate relevance that are at the same time remarkably diverse in both the geographic spread of focus and authors. The Republic of Korea may remain sceptical about the Indo-Pacific as a construct, however, it is clear from this work that the Indo-Pacific as a region is deeply interested in and important to Korea. - Gordon Flake, CEO, Perth USAsia Centre, The University of Western Australia, Perth

     

    […] the book is a timely and a much-required contribution […] the editor has done an excellent job in bringing together a diverse set of scholars in providing a diverse set of strategic and security issues of the Korean Peninsula and its broader regional implications. This volume is highly recommended for students, scholars and policymakers who are interested in the developments in the security and international affairs in the Korean Peninsula and Indo-Pacific. - Jojin V. John, Reserach Fellow, Indian Council of World Affairs, India