Analysis Of South Korea's Middle Power Diplomacy In East Asia

Heated issues of today's international community are getting more acute as economic globalization and political multipolarization are further developed.As the consequence of the rise of new powers and their increasingly important role on the world stage,the unipolar system led by traditional great powers is weakening.Countries that pursue to address international issues through multilateral cooperation mechanism have built up a positive image of “good citizen”,and they are recognized as middle powers.The origin of middle powers can be traced back to the Italian city-state system in the 16 th century,and it had drawn extensive attention by the end of the World War II.In the wake of the Cold War,the rise of middle powers has been deeply reshaping the world political and economic order as the world entered the 21 st century.They propose to tackle the severe challenges facing the international community by reforming the existing systems.As a regional middle power in East Asia,Republic of Korea plays an increasingly important role on issues such as the integration of East Asia,trade cooperation,and climate change.Starting with the research on the theory of middle powers,an overall assessment of its theoretical development has been conducted in the dissertation.The concept of middle powers is revisited by the use of qualitative and quantitative analyses.Consequently,the diplomatic characteristics of middle powers are also discussed.Furthermore,Republic of Korea's middle power strategic goals are clarified by analyzing its middle power motives and goals.At last,practices,constraints,and influence of Republic of Korea's middle power strategy in East Asia are discussed.