In which I reluctantly defend neorealism as a grand theory applicable to the security situation in North East Asia: Rather than asserting that realism or its offshoots are the ultimate International Relations grand theories, I suggest that neorealism remains a crucial aspect of IR security … Continue readingThe Koreas, Bastion of Cold War Realism
I wrote some very niche US-DPRK history (with a lot of help from scholars more senior) about a lost moment for potential reconciliation in 2013. Once more it seems that unsubtle displays of military might trump all other tools of diplomacy: on the Korean Peninsula, … Continue readingKing, Wu, B-52: A Tense Moment In US-DPRK History
Lao She, Cat Country [貓城記]. William A Lyell, trans. Penguin Books: Melbourne, 2013 [1932]. ISBN: 978-0-14-320812-9 A Chinese man crash-lands on Mars, finding himself in a country inhabited by Cat People. One of my colleagues and I have a long-standing mutual exchange of books whenever … Continue readingBook Review: Cat Country [1932] by Lao She
Morgan Potts is the editor for the Tongsin (통신) project at Sino-NK, examining North Korean news media which relates to China and the Sino-DPRK relationship. … Continue readingRusso-Chinese Relations, US-ROK War Games, and the Facade of a United Sino-DPRK Perspective: Tongsin no. 5
With their Cold War alliance strained at best, Beijing only supports Pyongyang to ensure China’s domestic economic growth through capitalism. … Continue readingThe Difficult Sino-DPRK Relationship
China unveiled a new, elongated vertical map of its territorial claims. … Continue readingChina Publishes New 10-Dash Line Map of Territorial Claims
Morgan Potts’ regular feature on Sino-NK enters its fourth edition. The latest Tongsin for March–May 2014 examines the DPRK response to US-ROK war games and the Sewol disaster, in which the North attempts to illustrate a united Sino-DPRK perspective that is both anti-American and anti-South Korean. … Continue readingTongsin | 통신 no. 4: War Games and the Sewol Sinking
The lecture by Prof. Tom Berger came down to a question of whether Japan is nationalistic or pragmatic. … Continue reading"Japan's Maritime Disputes": Review of the Chatham House Event
Tongsin | 통신 examines the DPRK state media relating to China. This month the state news focused on the US-ROK war games, painting a narrative of a sincere and cooperative North Korea and a belligerent South Korea. … Continue readingTongsin | 통신 no. 03: The War Games Continue
The second installation of Tongsin | 통신 focuses in on the DPRK rhetoric surrounding the upcoming Key Resolve/Foal Eagle exercises and China’s place in the reunification narrative. … Continue readingTongsin | 통신 no. 02: Military Exercises and Reunification