Foreign Relations of the Two Koreas in 2009

Abstract

The Republic of Korea (ROK—South Korea) found it possible to work with the new United States (US) administration and with a new government in Japan, despite initial apprehension about both. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK—North Korea) did not. More mundane economic worries include such issues as contaminated foodstuffs from China and patent infringements, which surface from time to time. Relations with Japan continued along the relatively smoother path of 2008, with President Lee and Japanese Prime Minister Asō Tarō, who met twice during the year in Seoul, finding common ground on approaches to the DPRK and the need for a strong relationship with the US. The nuclear issue remained the dominant theme in the DPRK's international relations. The last months of the Bush administration saw an impasse in the Six Party Talks that remained unresolved as the Obama administration came into office in January 2009. Keywords:China; Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK); international relation; Japan; nuclear issue; Republic of Korea (ROK); Six Party Talks; United States (US)