New year, new approach: What’s next for DPRK affairs in 2020?

Wednesday 19 February 2020, New year, new approach: What’s next for DPRK affairs in 2020?

Korea Risk Group has held an inaugural Brussels briefing event on Wednesday, February 19, 2020, intended to help policy-makers, senior researchers and business leaders better understand the year ahead for all-things DPRK.

Leveraging its uniquely neutral position in the DPRK information ecosystem, Korea Risk Group has cooperated with the UniKorea Foundation and KF-VUB Korea Chair to convene 20 visiting specialists to take a detailed look at four focus areas in particular. In “What next for foreign policy?” four international experts from academia, media, think tank and track two sectors have discussed the geopolitical prospects for DPRK in the year ahead, with Kim Jong Un’s end-of-December deadline in mind.

During the panel “DPRK: Views from the ground,” long-term residents, businesspeople, regular visitors to Pyongyang and those working with DPRK persons overseas have shared insights into emerging trends while looking at what the year may have in store ahead.

In “Economy Under Sanctions,” leading academics, specialist analysts, and investigative journalists have discussed the prospects for the international sanctions regime and – despite it – Pyongyang’s capabilities to sustain modest economic growth.

Finally, in “Media: From Inside and Out” two specialists with deep knowledge of official and unofficial discourse have discussed what has been said and unsaid recently by the DPRK itself.

With 20 guest speakers and moderators traveling to Brussels from places including Asia, Europe, and North America, this “New year, new approach: What’s next for DPRK affairs in 2020?” event promises to offer some of the freshest insights and analysis to understand the year ahead. The event is off-the record.

Prior to the briefing event, the KF-VUB Korea Chair and Korea Risk Group have jointly organised a closed-door roundtable discussion on North Korean policy issues. KF-VUB Korea Chair Ramon Pacheco Pardo gave introductory remarks, followed by a roundtable discussion with panelists Chad O’Carroll (Korea Risk Group CEO), Minyoung Lee (Korea Risk Group Analyst) and Oliver Hotham (Korea Risk Group Analyst). They briefly assessed prospects for DPRK diplomacy which was followed by free discussion.