9 December, 2009

CISS and South Korea’s East Asia Institute, a fellow MacArthur Asia Security Initiative core institution, met in Seoul from 22-23 November 2009 for the ‘China-South Korea Northeast Asia Security Dialogue’. Around 20 scholars and students from Peking University, Liaoning University, the East Asia Institute, Seoul University, Yonsei University and Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, joined the dialogue. CISS Director Professor Wang Jisi led the delegation from China.  

This dialogue was designed to develop understanding and cooperation between China and South Korea, particularly between young scholars from both sides. It also looked for ways to enhance strategic cooperation between China and South Korea on the North Korean nuclear issue and Northeast Asian security. Discussions focused on the future of the Six-Party Talks, the role of the US, denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula, and the transnational nationalities issue. CISS Deputy Director Professor Zhu Feng presented a paper on ‘Denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula and China-South Korea-US Relations’, which evaluated President Obama’s recent Asia tour, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao’s visit to North Korea, and the policy Washington and Seoul had adopted for dealing with Pyongyang. Professor Chaesung Chun from the East Asia Institute presented on ‘Strategic and Future Cooperation between China and South Korea on the Nuclear Issue’, which argued for a mutual increase in economic aid to North Korea and urged China to play a bigger role in helping to push forward the de-nuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.     

As core institutes under the MacArthur Foundation’s Asian Security Initiative, CISS and the East Asia Institute also discussed how best to cooperate in future research.