South Korea's commercial liberal approach to security

Abstract

This thesis examines South Korea's approach to security based upon the commercial liberalist theory. The primary research question was: can economic interdependence through trade decrease the threat of conflict? The main thrust of the thesis is to analyze the South Koreans' effort to elicit cooperation from its adversaries through economic means. The thesis starts with South Korea's bilateral efforts to induce cooperation first from China and then from North Korea. Next, the thesis examines South Korea's efforts to engage North Korea through a multilateral vehicle such as the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). Then, the thesis examines the Tumen River Area Development Program (TRADP) as an alternative multilateral vehicle to engage the North Koreans. Despite the challenges of multilateral forums, the thesis proposes that the South Koreans should continue to elicit cooperation from the North Koreans through economic means. The thesis is relevant because the U.S. has played a vital role in the security on the Korean peninsula since the end of World War II and decisions made by South Korea regarding security matters affects the U.S. and its interests in the region.