How to Position South Korea in a Dramatically Changing World

Korea needs to think strategically how to position itself advantageously in today's rapidly changing and uncertain world. This paper focuses on three economic and geostrategic challenges. These are the trade war between the U.S. and China, the challenges and opportunities presented by the rapid development and application of disruptive technology, and those presented by the rapid rise of China. The three are interrelated. The trade war between the U.S. and China are fundamentally about competition between the leading global economy and a new superpower revolving over leadership in new and potentially disruptive technologies. This has serious implications for Korea because China and the U.S. are Korea's largest trading partners. The first part of the report lays out the context and challenges. The second part lays out some of the actions that Korea should consider on the international side as well as on the domestic side to improve its competitiveness and flexibility to deal with these challenges