East Asia Henry Fleck East Asia Henry Fleck

South Korea’s 2024 Elections: What to Know

People across the world have already started eyeing the U.S. presidential race between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, but there’s another high-stakes election across the Pacific. On April 10, South Korea will elect a new National Assembly, the country’s 300-member unicameral legislature. The results will in large part indicate citizens’ satisfaction with President Yoon Suk Yeol, elected in 2022, and his conservative People Power Party (PPP), while also testing the mettle of the main opposition, the more liberal Democratic Party (DP), which seeks to keep Yoon from gaining momentum as it looks ahead to the 2027 presidential election.

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East Asia Tai Halpern East Asia Tai Halpern

China & Russia Seek Closer Security Cooperation Amidst Growing American Influence

On Tuesday, April 9, Chinese State Official Wang Yi hosted his Russian counterpart Minister Sergey Lavrov in Beijing for talks on economic and security cooperation. The new cooperative measures are set to displace American influence in Asia and Europe, the United States’ most strategically important region and former most strategically important region, according to political scientist and professor John Mearsheimer.

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East Asia Tai Halpern East Asia Tai Halpern

China’s Credit Downgraded amid Negative Future Forecast

This week, U.S.-based credit rating agency Moody downgraded China’s economic outlook. Though not an official credit downgrade — China’s credit remains rated A1 — the news still carries heavy significance, as an outlook downgrade is generally the first step taken before credit is downgraded in the future.

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