East Asian Community: Myth and Reality

In the 21st century, a stage of complex transformation, East Asian nations must adopt proactive stances to avoid being relegated to the sidelines and to fulfill their respective roles. Discussions on East Asian regionalization must be initiated in earnest, and practical measures must be pursued. To properly understand and navigate the drama of cooperation and conflict unfolding in East Asia today, we need to craft a 'narrative' that encompasses both the constraints of the present and the dreams of the future. - From the Preface

About the Book

The East Asia Institute (EAI) has published the book, "East Asian Community: Myth and Reality." This book, primarily authored by Professor Hayong Sun of Seoul National University's Department of International Relations, features contributions from 12 prominent Korean scholars who participate in EAI's National Security Panel (NSP). It delves into discussions on conflict, cooperation, and integration within the East Asian region.

Existing discussions on regional integration can be broadly categorized into two main streams. The first is characterized by an enthusiastic embrace of the European integration model, urging East Asia to follow suit, often leading to abstract assertions. The second stream is skeptical, emphasizing the conflict-ridden nature of East Asia and its historical and cultural differences from Europe, thereby deeming the realization of an East Asian Community as distant. While it is indeed questionable whether the East Asian region will follow a path of integration similar to Europe's, it is also true that cooperative conditions are growing, making it insufficient to remain solely focused on competition among prosperous nations while harboring latent conflicts.

The central concept articulated in this book can be summarized as the 'East Asian Network Complex.' A prerequisite for discussing regional issues is a sober diagnosis of the reality. International relations characterized by coexistence of conflict and cooperation are not a new phenomenon. However, the emergence of diverse actors and the increasing importance of new domains such as environment, culture, and information/knowledge, on par with security and economy, have reshaped the landscape. Furthermore, these elements are not isolated but are intricately interconnected and continuously evolving. This is the complex, multi-layered, and dynamic nature of conflict and cooperation today. The 'East Asian Network Complex' aims to capture this era of complex transformation while presenting a desirable future vision.

The concept of the East Asian Network Complex serves as a blueprint for a future where regional actors can enjoy stable and prosperous lives. It is the result of a political art that encompasses the dynamics of conflict and cooperation across various domains, including economy, security, culture, energy, environment, and information/knowledge, within a vast network. This book proposes a new discourse of weaving a complex network.

This book holds significant importance as a comprehensive academic work on the East Asian Community (EAC). To produce this volume, scholars affiliated with the EAI National Security Panel engaged in intensive, wide-ranging debates on a single theme for a year and a half. The collective intellectual passion and effort of numerous scholars, along with the content refined through these discussions, have culminated in this book, with representative scholars taking the lead in writing each chapter. The process of collaborative work, involving extensive discussion and revision over a considerable period on a single subject, offers significant insights for our academic publications.

This book poses a question about the desirable future vision for the era of transformation in the 21st century. It is underpinned by the imperatives of regional security and peace, and ultimately, global prosperity. The book seeks to address these through the discourse of the East Asian Network Complex. This volume will serve as a valuable intellectual catalyst for experts, scholars, students, and the general public interested in new international relations and regionalization in the 21st century.

Table of Contents

Preface

Chapter 1 East Asian Community: Myth and Reality | Hayong Sun

Part I East Asian Strategies of Major Powers

Chapter 2 EU and the East Asian Community | Jaesung Lee

Chapter 3 East Asian Community and the United States | Sung-Han Kim

Chapter 4 East Asian Community and China | Taehwan E. Lee

Chapter 5 Japan's East Asian Strategy and Community Theory | Yeol Son

Chapter 6 Russia's National Strategy and Multilateral Cooperation in East Asia | Bumshik Shin

Part II The East Asian Stage in the 21st Century

Chapter 7 East Asian Security Community | Sanghyun Lee

Chapter 8 East Asian Economic Cooperation in Transition | Seung Ryul Oh

Chapter 9 East Asian Knowledge Network | Youngjae Bae

Chapter 10 East Asian Community and Cultural Networks | Byung-won Min

Chapter 11 East Asian Energy Cooperation | Hyun Jin Kim

Part III Index

Chapter 12 Economic Index | Yeol Son

Chapter 13 Military Index | Sung-Ho Shin

Appendix

Key Documents and Speeches on East Asian Strategy

Authors

Sung-Han Kim

Graduated from Seoul National University, Department of English Language and Literature. Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Texas at Austin. Former Vice President of the Korean Political Science Association. Former Advisory Member to the National Security Council (NSC) and the Ministry of National Defense. Former Professor at the Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security. Currently Professor at the Graduate School of International Studies, Korea University. Major publications include "The Theory and Practice of U.S. Foreign Policy" (co-authored), "East Asian Environmental Security" (co-edited), "U.S. Global Strategy and the Korean Peninsula," and "The End of Humanitarian Intervention?"

Hyun Jin Kim

Graduated from Ewha Womans University, Department of Political Science and International Relations. Master's and Ph.D. in International Relations from the University of Tokyo, Japan. Currently Professor at the Graduate School of Management, Seoul National University of Science and Technology, and Director of the Environmental Management Research Center. Major publications include "The Rise of Carbon Markets and Business Models," "The Kyoto Protocol and Corporate Responses," and "Trends and Outlook for Major Oil Market Players."

Byung-won Min

Graduated from Seoul National University, Department of International Relations. Ph.D. in Political Science from Ohio State University. Currently Professor at the Graduate School of IT Policy, SeoulTech. Major publications include "International Politics Explained by Complex Systems," "Complex Systems Workshop," "Globalization and National Transformation: A Theoretical Consideration of the Emergence of Network States," "International Relations of Culture: Understanding through the Network Concept," "Order Amidst Uncertainty: Complex Systems Theory and International Politics," and "Cognitive Communities and Knowledge Networks of Empires: Case Studies of Chatham House and the Royal Institute of International Affairs."

Youngjae Bae

Graduated from Seoul National University, Department of International Relations. Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Currently Professor in the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Konkuk University. Major publications include "The International Politics of Science and Technology," "The Formation and Development of U.S. Knowledge Hegemony," "Biotechnology and International Regulation," and "Transnational Semiconductor Production Networks and Northeast Asian Economic Cooperation."

Yeol Son

Graduated from the College of Education, Seoul National University. Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Chicago. Currently Professor at the Graduate School of International Studies, Yonsei University. Major publications include "Japan: Politics and Economics of Growth and Crisis," "Japanese Industrial Governance," "East Asia and Regionalism" (co-edited), and "East Asia Woven by Charm" (co-edited).

Bumshik Shin

Graduated from Seoul National University, Department of International Relations and its Graduate School. Ph.D. in Political Science from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO), Russia. Currently Professor in the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Incheon National University and Secretary-General of the Korean Association of Slavic Studies. Major publications include "Challenges and International Relations in 21st Century Eurasia" (co-edited), "Russia's Choice: Post-Soviet Transition and Changes in State, Market, and Society" (co-authored), "Russian Nonproliferation Policy and the Korean Peninsula" (co-authored), and "Siberian Journey: An Expedition Report by 8 Russian Experts" (co-authored).

Sung-Ho Shin

Graduated from Seoul National University, Department of International Relations. Ph.D. in International Politics from the Fletcher School, Tufts University. Former Researcher at the Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies (APCSS) and the Institute for Foreign Policy Analysis (IFPA). Currently Professor at the Graduate School of International Studies, Seoul National University. Major publications include "Preempting Proliferation of WMD: Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) and its Challenges," "Japan-South Korea Relations: Slowly Lifting the Burden of History?", and "Grudging Partner: South Korea."

Seung Ryul Oh

Graduated from Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. Master's degree from National Taiwan University. Ph.D. in Economics from the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Currently Professor at the Graduate School of International and Area Studies, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. Major publications include "Modern Chinese Economy" (co-authored), "Theories and Policies for North Korean Economic Change," "Measures for Forming a South-North Korean Economic Community," and "China's Development and Macroeconomic Policies."

Sanghyun Lee

Graduated from Seoul National University, Department of International Relations. Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Currently Director of the Security Studies Division at the Sejong Institute. Major publications include "The North Korean Nuclear Issue and the Korean Peninsula Peace Regime" (co-edited), "Roadmap for the ROK-U.S. Alliance: Vision, Issues, and Strategy" (edited), "Korean Peninsula Peace Regime" (co-authored), "South Korea's National Strategy 2020" (co-authored), "U.S. Military Transformation Strategy: Origins, Achievements, and Evaluation," "The Transition of Wartime Operational Control and Issues in the ROK-U.S. Alliance," "ROK-U.S. Alliance and Strategic Flexibility: Issues and Prospects," and "Cooperative Threat Reduction Strategy for Resolving the North Korean WMD Problem."

Taehwan E. Lee

Graduated from Seoul National University, Department of International Relations. Ph.D. in International Politics from the University of Southern California. Currently Senior Research Fellow at the Sejong Institute, Vice President of the Korean Political Science Association, and Chairman of the Korea-China Think Net. Major publications include "South Korea's National Strategy 2020: Northeast Asian Security Cooperation" (edited), "Northeast Asian Environmental Cooperation" (edited), "North Korea and Northeast Asia" (edited), and "Emerging East Asian Regionalism: Trend and Response" (co-authored).

Jaesung Lee

Graduated from Seoul National University, Department of International Relations. Ph.D. in Political Science from Northwestern University. Former Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Sookmyung Women's University. Currently Professor in the Department of International Relations, Seoul National University. Major publications include "Reinhold Niebuhr's Christian Realist Theory of International Politics," "A Preliminary Study for Realist International Institutionalism," and "U.S. Policy Toward Korea Regarding the 1965 Normalization of Diplomatic Relations between South Korea and Japan and the Dispatch of Troops to Vietnam."

Hayong Sun

Graduated from Seoul National University, Department of International Relations. Ph.D. in International Politics from the University of Washington. Currently Professor in the Department of International Relations, Seoul National University, and Chairman of EAI's Global Network 21. Major edited works include "Internationalization and Globalization: World Politics in Korea, China, Japan, and Cyberspace," "Peace Studies in the 21st Century," "A Centennial Plan for the Korean Peninsula in the 21st Century," "Viewing the Changing World Clearly," "Grand Strategy for South Korean Diplomacy in the 21st Century," "Vision and Tasks for the ROK-U.S. Alliance," and "The North Korean Nuclear Crisis and Peace on the Korean Peninsula."

For the convenience of our readers, portions of the manuscript are made available.