South Korea’s 2025 presidential election marked a major political shift, ushering in a new era of leadership under President Lee Jae-myung. With the impeachment of former President Yoon Suk Yeol and a strong voter mandate for change, the new administration’s domestic and foreign policy choices could have lasting implications for the U.S.–South Korea alliance.

Join the Pacific Council on August 13 at 8 am PT as we unpack the outcome of South Korea’s recent election, its regional significance, and the evolving dynamics of U.S.–South Korea relations. The audience will hear from Kayla Orta, Nonresident Fellow, Indo-Pacific Security Initiative, Atlantic Council; Stephan Haggard, Lawrence and Sallye Krause Distinguished Professor Emeritus and Director Emeritus, Korea-Pacific Program, UCSD, and Research Director, Global Governance, University of California Institute for Global Conflict and Cooperation (IGCC); and Philip Yun, Co-President & Co-CEO, Commonwealth Club World Affairs of California (CCWA), and a Senior Fellow at the Pacific Council.

Why it’s important:

• On June 3, Lee Jae-myung, the center-left Democratic Party candidate, won the South Korean presidential election with nearly 50% of the votes. 
• President Lee is expected to be more conciliatory toward China and North Korea, but remains interested in South Korea’s relationship with Japan, as emphasized during former President Yoon’s leadership. 
• There are concerns among current and former Trump administration officials that Chinese interference may have played a role in Lee’s win. 

Please feel free to send questions in advance to events@pacificcouncil.org.

To register for this webinar, visit the Zoom Registration Page.

Guest Speaker

Stephan Haggard is a research professor, Lawrence and Sallye Krause Distinguished Professor Emeritus and serves as the Director Emeritus for the Korea-Pacific Program, and Research Director for Global Governance at the University of California Institute for Global Conflict and Cooperation (IGCC). He teaches courses on the international relations of the Asia-Pacific and Korean peninsula at GPS covering political economy as well as security issues. He has done extensive research on North Korea in particular. In addition, he has a long-standing interest in transitions to and from democratic rule and the current phenomenon of democratic backsliding.

His most recent books include “Developmental States” (2018) on the rapid growth of East Asia. His work on North Korea includes three books with Marcus Noland: “Famine in North Korea: Markets, Aid and Reform” (2007), “Witness to Transformation: Refugee Insights into North Korea” (2011) and “Hard Target: Sanctions, Inducements and the Case of North Korea” (2017). His work on transitions to and from democratic rule includes “Dictators and Democrats: Masses, Elites and Regime Change” (2016) and “Backsliding: Democratic Regress in the Contemporary World” (2021).

He has provided commentary for major news outlets, such as CNN International and writes for the Korea Economic Institute's Peninsula blog. He is editor emeritus of the Journal of East Asian Studies. 

Guest Speaker

Kayla T. Orta is a nonresident fellow in the Indo-Pacific Security Initiative at the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security. Orta is also a nonresident fellow at the European Centre for North Korean Studies. As a former US Department of Defense National Security Education Program Boren scholar, her regional expertise lies in US-Republic of Korea (ROK) ties, North Korea, and US-ROK-Japan trilateral relations at the intersection of security and technology policy. Her work focuses on nonproliferation, nuclear deterrence, and civil nuclear energy markets.

Professionally fluent in Korean, Orta most recently worked as the senior associate at the Wilson Center’s Hyundai Motor-Korea Foundation Center for Korean History and Public Policy. She has held a variety of fellowships in the United States and South Korea, including at the ROK Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Nuclear Nonproliferation Education and Research Center at KAIST. Previously, Orta was a US member of the Department of State’s Women Experts in US-ROK-Japan Trilateral Security program and participated in the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Next Generation Arms Control Expert initiative.

Orta’s published articles on US-Indo-Pacific relations include “US-ROK Global Strategic Partnership in the Indo-Pacific,” “Defending Energy Security Pathways: US-ROK-Japan Strategic Cooperation,” and “Strength in Partnership: Elevating US-ROK Cooperation in Nuclear Energy.” She is also the editor of, Avoiding Meltdowns & Blackouts: Confidence-building in Inter-Korean Engagement on Nuclear Safety and Energy Development, which features insights from US and South Korean nuclear policy experts. 

She holds an MIS in Korean Studies from Seoul National University’s Graduate School of International Studies. Her thesis, written in Korean, analyzed US and South Korean foreign policy strategies during the 1994 North Korean Nuclear Crisis. She also attained her dual BA in international studies and foreign languages (magna cum laude) from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.

Moderator

Philip W. Yun’s career has spanned the private and public sectors for the past 40 years, with experience in security affairs, foreign policy, diplomacy, international development, law, business, politics, and philanthropy. He is currently Co-President and Co-CEO of Commonwealth Club World Affairs of California (CCWA), a leading nonpartisan public forum based in San Francisco.

CCWA is the product of a merger between the World Affairs Council of Northern California, founded in 1947, and The Commonwealth Club of California, established in 1903. Combined, both organizations have been an integral part of the Bay Area’s civic life for over 200 years. CCWA continues to provide a local, regional, and national platform for newsmakers, changemakers, and leaders to discuss and advocate for local and global solutions facing our world while advancing diverse ideas and viewpoints. Its platform includes weekly radio programs and podcasts that are carried by almost 300 radio stations throughout the U.S.

Mr. Yun transitioned to his current position on November 1, 2023, following four years as President and CEO of World Affairs. Previously, Mr. Yun was the Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer of Ploughshares Fund. Before joining Ploughshares Fund, he was a vice president at The Asia Foundation (2005-2011), a Pantech Scholar in Korean Studies at the Shorenstein Asia Pacific Research Center at Stanford University (2004-2005), and a vice president at the private equity firm of H&Q Asia Pacific (2001-2004).

Mr. Yun was a presidential appointee at the U.S. Department of State (1994-2001), serving as Senior Advisor to the Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs. During this time, he also worked as a senior advisor to two U.S. Coordinators for North Korea Policy: former Secretary of Defense William J. Perry; and then former Under Secretary of State Wendy Sherman. Mr. Yun was a member of a government working group that managed U.S. policy and negotiations with North Korea under President Clinton and was part of the U.S. delegation that traveled to North Korea with Secretary of State Madeline Albright in October 2000.

Prior to government service, Mr. Yun practiced law at the firms of Pillsbury Madison & Sutro in San Francisco and Garvey Schubert & Barer in Seattle. He was also a foreign legal consultant at the firm of Shin & Kim in Seoul, Korea.

Mr. Yun’s writings and commentary have appeared on CNN, The Hill, Foreign Policy.com, AP TV, Fox News, NPR, NBC, U.S. News and World Report, and the Los Angeles Times, among others. He is the co-editor of a book entitled “North Korea and Beyond” (2006).

Mr. Yun attended Brown University (magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa) and the Columbia University School of Law. He was a Fulbright Scholar to Korea. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and an emeritus member of the Board of Governors for Brown University’s Watson Institute for International Studies.

 

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