[Kim Seong-kon] What lies ahead us in the Biden era?
Recently, US President-elect Joseph Biden announced, "I'm telling world leaders that America is back." In response, world leaders applauded his message, saying, "Welcome back, America." As America is...
[Slawomir Sierakowski] Trump's departure puts mini-Trumps in the wilderness
Joe Biden's election as president of the United States has seriously weakened authoritarian and populist governments around the world. For independent global powers like Russia, Brazil and Turkey, Do...
[Andreas Kluth] Inevitable legacy of COVID pandemic
"So when our Sickness, and our Poverty Had greater wants than we could well supply; Strict Orders did but more enrage our grief, And hinder in accomplishing relief." That's how the British poet Geor...
[Kent Harrington] America's alliances after Trump
America's allies should be forgiven if they are confused about where American foreign policy is headed. Who isn't, given the go-it-alone recklessness of Donald Trump's presidency? Over the past three...
[Daniel Moss] North-South split shows there's no Asian model
The grinding recovery from the epic global recession has generated a deep divide within Asia: Economies in the north are ascendant and their once faster-growing southern neighbors are mired in a deep...
[David Fickling] Biden, like Trump, will deepen integration with China
To look at the politics of it, you might think that four years of President Donald Trump's trade war on China were just starting to bear fruit as he prepares to leave office. Japanese Prime Minister...
[Lee Kyong-hee] A brief tribute to Korea's precious friends
The first time I met Kevin L. O'Rourke the Columban priest had just won a prize for his translation of "The Poetry of John" by Chang Yong-hak, a short story depicting postwar existentialism in South ...
[Noah Smith] Biden will need to get creative to save the economy
Joe Biden has been elected to be the next president of the United States. Now he'll have to get creative. When the president-elect takes office, he'll confront the country's two most acute challenge...
[Kim Seong-kon] When "shinbaram" blows in Korea
One of the distinctive characteristics of Korean culture is "sinbaram." In Korean, "sin" (pronounced "shin") means God or spirits and "baram" means wind. When someone is excited, Koreans say, "sinbar...
[Andreas Kluth] Populist politics in Poland serves as warning to US
In 2015, the year before Donald Trump became president of the US, a similar power shift occurred in Eastern Europe, albeit on a smaller scale. Like America soon after, Poland veered hard-right toward...
[Eric Posne] Joe Biden's precarious victory
Joe Biden has survived a grueling election campaign and a cliff-hanger election. Next, he must fend off legal challenges from US President Donald Trump's campaign. While he will most likely enter the...
[Jan-Werner Mueller] Truth and de-Trumpification under a Biden presidency
Among Democrats and many Republicans, there is a great temptation to dismiss US President Donald Trump's administration as a bizarre aberration. Just as Republicans may try to blame the many transgre...
[Serendipity] Beautiful country: Living up to its name
As I write this, Thursday afternoon in Seoul, more than a full day after the 2020 United States presidential election came to a close, it remains unclear who is the winner. The Democrats, who had la...
[Robert J. Fouser] Why Koreans wear face masks
More than anything else, the face mask has come to symbolize the COVID-19 pandemic. It stirs strong emotions and deep prejudices. It has been at the center of public health debates and the turbulent ...
[Noah Feldman] Trump's Supreme Court threat will backfire in a legal battle
Regardless of what happens in the vote counting, President Donald Trump has said he is going to the Supreme Court to ask for … something or other. When he does, he will have to overcome a hurdle of h...