The Potential Role of South-East Asia in North Korea's Economic Reforms: The Cases of ASEAN, Vietnam and Singapore
Journal of Asian and African Studies
Published online on March 05, 2015
Abstract
The process of engaging the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea stands at a crossroads that presents challenges as well as opportunities. We believe that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) can indirectly help to facilitate North Korean reforms in three ways: (i) Political: via ASEAN’s ability to function as a neutral facilitator of dialogue; (ii) Economic: as models of economic reform for North Korea (particularly based on the experiences of Singapore and Vietnam); (iii) Social: the Choson Exchange based in Singapore is an ideal location for enabling North Koreans to study abroad and thus gain a greater understanding of other countries.