South Korea’s Rise at the Intersection of Globalization and Deglobalization

There is a vast volume of studies on globalization, particularly focusing on benefits and drawbacks of globalization. However, there are many signs of deglobalization appearing today because of the trade disputes between the US and China and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. A new “cold war” seems on the way, particularly in the Northeast Asia. Korea developed its economy rapidly based on export-oriented industrialization. Globalization that brought global trade expansion facilitated Korea’s rise. However, as we noted, there are signs of deglobalization, that will present challenges and difficulties to Korea’s rise. Despite the changes, previous studies heavily focused on globalization as deglobalization is rather a new phenomenon. Thus, in our studies, we will delineate the signs of deglobalization and how they may affect Korea. In other words, we will delve into the recent changes in international political and economic arena and their implications for Korea’s foreign, economic, public, and cultural policies. Based on the analysis, we will make policy suggestions on what the Korean government should do to cope with the challenges. Our studies will make important theoretical contributions to the literature.