The Year in Review: South Korea in 2010

From the sinking of the Cheonan, to North Korea’s disclosure of its clandestine uranium enrichment facility, to the shelling of Yeonpyeong Island, a multitude of inter-Korean security crises this year raised a real possibility of war on the Peninsula. With Kim Jong-eun anointed as its future leader, North Korea underwent internal government reshuffling and embarked on a succession process to open a third-generation of the Kim family’s dynastic rule. Tensions of armed conflict and rapid developments on the Peninsula had an impact on the regional security landscape. On the one hand, the Republic of Korea (ROK, South Korea) and the U.S. were brought together to demonstrate strong solidarity and reaffirm the strength of their security alliance, and the two countries agreed to delay the transfer of wartime Operational Control (OPCON). The situation also opened a new horizon in U.S.-ROK-Japan trilateral cooperation by drawing South Korea and Japan closer to restart their dialogue on formal security cooperation. On the other hand, divergent security interests of countries surrounding the Peninsula gave rise to regional tensions, particularly between the U.S. and China.