EAI held an Expert Seminar of the EAI Fellows Program on April 4, 2016 with Professor Rosemary Foot from St Antony’s College of the University of Oxford, UK. Professor Foot presented on US rebalance to Asia policy and East Asian countries’ different perspectives toward it, entitled “Identity Politics and the US Rebalance to Asia: American and Northeast Asian Perspectives.” Professor Foot noted that the current international relations theories, particularly neo-realism, are not enough to explain the current complex situation in East Asia. Therefore, she suggested the concept of identity in order for better understanding of variegation in response of the local actors to US pivot strategy. Participants of this seminar exchanged their views on the current situation of international relations in East Asia where competition and cooperation are coexisting, and theoretical usefulness of the concept of international identity.

Topic

“Identity Politics and the US Rebalance to Asia: American and Northeast Asian Perspectives”

Presenter

Rosemary Foot, St Antony’s College, University of Oxford

Moderator

Sang Yoon Ma, The Catholic University of Korea

Discussants

Chaesung Chun, The Center for International Relations Studies of EAI / Seoul National University

Yong-Soo Eun, Hanyang University

Jae Cheol Kim, The Catholic University of Korea

Jaechun Kim, Sogang University

Dong Sun Lee, Korea University

* “Fellows Program on Peace, Governance, and Development in East Asia” invites both established and next-generation East Asia specialists from all over the world, giving them the opportunity to conduct their research in East Asian countries and to promote scholarly exchanges among scholars and experts. The awardees give seminars and lectures based on their chosen research topic during their research travel to East Asian countries including South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, and China.