Knowing North Korea is a multi-part, multi-year series, showcasing social science research and scholarly findings to better understand the complexities surrounding North Korea. The Korea Society has hosted analysts, academics, journalists, aid workers, and refugees discussing North Korea.
In 2011, Jean Lee became the first American reporter granted permission to work as a journalist in North Korea, and a year later opened AP’s Pyongyang bureau, making the news agency the first and only U.S. news outlet with an office in the North Korean capital. Lee, who now serves as a Public Policy Fellow at the Wilson Center in Washington, D.C., shares photos and videos of homes, factories, schools and farms typically off-limits to foreigners, and offers her personal insights on daily life in North Korea. The award-winning journalist discusses the challenges of reporting on a country considered among the world’s worst for press freedom, the role her Korean-American ethnicity played in her interactions with the North Koreans, and her observations on reunification after working as a journalist on both sides of the DMZ.
Opening Pyongyang
Korea and Media Perceptions
with
Jean H. Lee, former AP North Korea Bureau Chief
In conversation with Nikita Desai, Director of Policy & Corporate programs
Thursday, May 14, 2015 | 6 PM
$10 Members | $20 Guests
~Explorer/YPN and above attend this program for FREE with Registration~
If you have any questions, please contact Nikita Desai or (212) 759-7525, ext. 355.
Of Interest:
Jean H. Lee Joins the Wilson Center’s NKIDP as a Public Policy Fellow
Katharina Zellweger, former North Korea country director for the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, discussed current research on the issue of people with disabilities in North Korean society. Ms. Zellweger, who first visited the DPRK over 20 years ago, worked in North Korea from 2006-2011 on humanitarian aid and development assistance.
People with Disabilities in a Changing North Korea
with
Katharina Zellweger, former North Korea Country Director for the Swiss Agency for Development
Thursday, April 30, 2015 | 12 PM
11:30 AM | Registration & Light Fare
12:00 PM | Discussion
$10 Members | $20 Guests
~Explorer/YPN and above attend this program for FREE with Registration~
If you have any questions, please contact Nikita Desai or (212) 759-7525, ext. 355.
Thank you. Well, I’ve had some very good meetings today, and I want to begin by saying that the best meeting I had, I had last night with my good friend, Ambassador Mark Lippert. I’m very proud to call him a friend and a colleague. We think that his bravery under fire, his courage and his steadiness, reflected the best of the United States. We also think that his deep affection and respect for Korea has shone through brightly throughout this crisis. By the same token, the tremendous warmth and the outpouring of sympathy and support, for Ambassador Lippert, for his family, for the U.S. Embassy throughout this affair has given a vivid demonstration of the strength of the U.S.-R.O.K. alliance and the depth of the friendship between the American and Korean people. So, I am proud of Ambassador Lippert and I am proud that the President selected him to represent the United States here in Korea.
Now over the course of the day I’ve had the opportunity to discuss a number of issues with both Foreign Ministry and Blue House colleagues. High on my agenda is the planning for the planned visit to the United States by President Park and a series of high-level engagements between our officials in the run up to that. We were able today to discuss a range of bilateral issues both on security and the strategic side, but also on the economic and people-to-people side. I can attest that our alliance is in very solid shape and our agenda going forward is a positive one.
More broadly, picking up on the very successful visit to Seoul by President Obama last April, we have seen and are proud of a tremendous degree of cooperation and progress on a range of global issues. We are working together to address transnational threats such as Ebola and other pandemics. We’re working together on climate change and the environment and clean energy, and we’re working together to address the threat and the scourge of ISIL and radical extremism. We’re also working on a regional basis with respect to Northeast Asia, and I note with interest that my friend and colleague Liu Jianchao from China and Mr. Ihara from Japan are also here in Korea today. It’s significant that the diplomatic world is now congregating in Seoul where there is a lot of good business to be done. But we also talked about the agenda more broadly in the region including with respect to ASEAN and the East Asia summit.
Lastly, let me just say that I expressed my strong appreciation to the Korean government for the very serious way that they are handling both the investigation into the attack on Ambassador Lippert and the serious way in which they are addressing the security needs of American citizens and of our Embassy writ large. I have received good assurances of continued close cooperation and believe that we can count on the Korean authorities to continue to ensure that this isolated issue is handled in a way consistent with justice and will leave no negative impact on our very healthy bilateral relations.
On February 25th, the Honorable Han Sung Joo met with senior policy analysts and the senior leadership of The Korea Society for a private roundtable discussion, North Korea Policy: Issues and Dilemmas. After the discussion, the ROK Ambassador to the United Nations, Ambassador Oh Joon hosted a private dinner in honor of Ambassador Han.
Wednesday, February 25, 2015 | 4 PM
If you have any questions, please contact Nikita Desai or (212) 759-7525, ext. 313.
Marking a year since the release of the United Nations Commission of Inquiry (COI) Report on North Korea, Dr. Victor Cha, Senior Advisor and Korea Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and Director of Asian Studies, Georgetown University, speaks to the significance of the report and steps forward. Dr. Cha will be joined by Lindsay Lloyd, Program Director at the Bush Institute, in conversation with The Korea Society SVP Dr. Stephen Noerper.
Human Rights and Diplomacy on the Korean Peninsula
with
Victor Cha, Senior Advisor and Korea Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and Director of Asian Studies, Georgetown University
Lindsay Lloyd, Program Director, Freedom Collection, George W. Bush Institute
In conversation with Dr. Stephen Noerper, Senior Vice President, The Korea Society
Wednesday, February 25, 2015 | 12 PM
11:30 AM | Registration & Light Fare
12:00 PM | Discussion
$10 Members | $20 Guests
~Explorer/YPN and above attend this program for FREE with Registration~
If you have any questions, please contact Nikita Desai or (212) 759-7525, ext. 355.
Of Interest:
Light Through the Darkness, by Amanda Schnetzer and Victor Cha
The Freedom Collection Interviews
The UN Commission of Inquiry Report on North Korea
The Washington Post: North Korea’s Human Rights Catastrophe
Part of the Legacies in Korea-U.S. Relations and Media Perceptions of Korea Series
Rutherford Poats, former United Press War Correspondent and Bureau Chief, discusses his book, Decision in Korea. Published over sixty years ago—and recently re-released as an ebook—this “reporter’s survey” stands as a vital record of the choices that tested a war-weary United States and the young United Nations.
Decision in Korea: Six Decades On
with
Rutherford Poats, former United Press War Correspondent and Bureau Chief and Author of Decision in Korea
In conversation with Dr. Stephen Noerper, Senior Vice President, The Korea Society
Thursday, February 19, 2015 | 12 PM
11:30 AM | Registration & Light Fare
12:00 PM | Discussion
$10 Members | $20 Guests
~Explorer/YPN and above attend this program for FREE with Registration~
If you have any questions, please contact Nikita Desai or (212) 759-7525, ext. 355.
Michael Schiffer, Senior Advisor and Counselor to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, offers insights on the new 114th Congress and its effect on Korea policy. A former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for East Asia, Schiffer shares his views on the impact of the new Republican majority, the final two years of the Obama White House, and prospects for Asia policy-making.
Korea and the Hill
with
Michael Schiffer, Senior Advisor and Counselor to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee
Moderated by Dr. Stephen Noerper, Senior Vice President, The Korea Society
Friday, January 30, 2015 | 12 PM
11:30 AM | Registration & Light Fare
12:00 PM | Discussion
$10 Members | $20 Guests
~Explorer and YPN Members are free but must register here~
If you have any questions, please contact Nikita Desai or (212) 759-7525, ext. 355.
Harvard Kennedy School-Belfer Center Senior Fellow Stephen Bosworth reflects on his years of professional and personal commitment to Korea. Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs Director Graham Allison describes Bosworth as “one of the most influential experts in the world on Korea policy.” Ambassador Bosworth served as Director of the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization, U.S. Ambassador to the ROK, Dean of the illustrious Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, and U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Policy.
Reflections on Korea: In Conversation with Ambassador Stephen Bosworth
Legacies in Korea-U.S. Relations Series
with
Stephen Bosworth, Senior Fellow, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
Moderated by Dr. Stephen Noerper, Senior Vice President, The Korea Society
Friday, December 5, 2014 | 12 PM
11:30 AM | Registration & Light Fare
12:00 PM | Discussion
$10 Members | $20 Guests
~Explorer and YPN Members are free but must register here~
If you have any questions, please contact Stephanie Lee or (212) 759-7525, ext. 313.
Vice Chairman Chung Chong-Wook and distinguished members Ha Young-Sun and Kim Joo-Hyun of the ROK Presidential Committee for Unification Preparation discuss their mission and early work as well as prospects for U.S. and international support. The group explores the complexities, challenges, and ultimate opportunities of the unification process and welcome audience thoughts and feedback during the Committee’s inaugural visit to New York City.
ROK Presidential Committee for Unification Preparation Briefing
with
Hon. Chung Chong-Wook, Vice Chairman, Presidential Committee for Unification Preparation
Ha Young-Sun, Member of the Presidential Committee for Unification Preparation
Kim Joo-Hyun, Member of the Presidential Committee for Unification Preparation
Welcome by Stephen Noerper, Senior Vice President, The Korea Society
Wednesday, December 3, 2014 | 11 AM
10:45 AM | Registration & Light Fare
11:00 AM-12:30 PM | Discussion
$10 Members | $20 Guests
~Explorer and Media and YPN Members are free but must register here~
If you have any questions, please contact Stephanie Lee or (212) 759-7525, ext. 313.
