Sandwiched between China and the US: South Korea's Quest of Transcending Diplomacy
 

Speaker: Prof. Moon Chung-in, James Laney Distinguished Professor, Yonsei University, Seoul, South Korea.  Krause Distinguished Fellow, School of Policy and Global Strategy, University of California, San Diego, and co-Convener of the Asia-Pacific Leadership Network for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament (APLN)

Moderator: Prof. Alka Acharya, Director, Institute of Chinese Studies (ICS)

The talk will deliberate on the convoluted dynamics and the new narratives in East Asia, in the context of present-day needs, from a mainly South Korean perspective. The lecture would seek to examine the unilateral and self-centred policies of the US under Trump 2.0., which are, to all extents and purposes, creating very damaging economic and political conditions for the world. It appears that the US is no longer playing the role of a hegemonic stabilizer, but contending with China to be the most powerful country. East Asia’s cognitive dissonance of the US has become severely aggravated under Trump 2.0.

This is the 3rd Gargi and Vidya Prakash Dutt Memorial Lecture 2026

(Collaboration: Institute of Chinese Studies)