2026, Vol.33, No.2

Characteristics and Driving Factors of the South Korea-China Digital Trade

Jin, Huizhen , Zhao, Xuanyi | 2026, 33(2) | pp.5~40 | number of Cited : 0

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Economic Cooperation among South Korea, China and Japan from the Perspective of Economic Security: Challenges and Prospects

zhang huizhi , Li Chang | 2026, 33(2) | pp.41~81 | number of Cited : 0

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Against the backdrop of intensifying geopolitical and geo-economic competition alongside the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic security has emerged as a core consideration in national strategic planning, exerting a profound influence on the development of regional economic cooperation in Northeast Asia. As major economic actors in the region, cooperation among the Republic of Korea, China and Japan has inevitably been readjusted amid the trend of securitization of economic issues.Based on the bounded rationality theory, this paper establishes an analytical framework consisting of economic security perception, policy path selection and evolution of cooperation patterns, and systematically analyzes the dynamic impacts of the three countries’ perceptions of economic security on their economic cooperation. The results show that while the three countries share certain common understandings of economic security, their respective perceptions differ substantially. Accordingly, they have adopted distinct approaches and policy paths to safeguard economic security, which has led to marked phased changes in trilateral economic cooperation. To be specific, the cooperation has undergone three stages: an in-depth development phase underpinned by the consensus of "efficiency priority", a constrained development phase dominated by the mindset of "security priority", and a newly revitalized phase driven by recent adjustments in relevant perceptions.Going forward, the three countries need to mitigate practical constraints on cooperation by strengthening high-level dialogues, expanding practical cooperation in low-politics areas, and fostering positive interaction between bilateral ties and trilateral cooperation. Meanwhile, they should further consolidate trilateral collaboration to jointly uphold economic security and accelerate regional economic integration.

China–ROK Economic Cooperation under Economic Security: Dilemmas and Pathways Forward

Xiangdan, Jin , Tianyi Wang | 2026, 33(2) | pp.81~114 | number of Cited : 0

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The Structural Characteristics of Competition over Computing Power in the Digital Economy and the Political Economy Logic of China–South Korea Cooperation

Naying An , Xinhong Zhou | 2026, 33(2) | pp.115~150 | number of Cited : 0

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With the rapid development of the digital economy, computing power has evolved from a technical resource into a critical foundational factor shaping national economic structures, industrial upgrading, and patterns of international competition. Competition over computing power is no longer merely a matter of technological catch-up or industrial policy rivalry; rather, it constitutes a structural political-economic process deeply embedded in global value chains, institutional arrangements, and the distribution of power. From a political economy perspective, under the intensifying U.S.–China strategic competition and the growing entanglement of security and technology restrictions, competition over computing power has undergone a marked structural transformation. This is reflected in the hierarchical stratification of the global computing system, the fragmentation of industrial chains, and the regionalization of technological cooperation. Against this backdrop, China–South Korea cooperation in computing power has become increasingly constrained in upper-end or frontier technology sectors. At the same time, however, the two countries still retain room for expanded cooperation in the overlapping middle- and lower-end segments, particularly in the layer where computing power is combined with practical applications, such as computing infrastructure and artificial intelligence applications. Given the relative controllability of security risks, the feasibility of tiered cooperation, and the principle of factor complementarity, key areas for bilateral cooperation may include midstream industrial chains, digital infrastructure, and AI application scenarios. In addition, the alignment between China’s Belt and Road Initiative and South Korea’s strategy for building an AI powerhouse may further broaden the space for cooperation. Under the evolving global power structure surrounding computing power, China and South Korea are likely to pursue a pattern of limited yet structural cooperation. The evolution of such cooperation will continue to display dynamic characteristics in which cooperation and competition coexist, while openness and constraints remain intertwined. This study seeks to deepen understanding of the political economy logic of competition over computing power in the digital era, provide a new analytical perspective for examining the behavioral patterns of middle powers under structures of high-tech competition, and explore the potential space for China–South Korea cooperation.

Exploring Future Signals in Abandoned Mine Regions Using Text Mining Techniques

Choi Yunseo , 노승국 | 2026, 33(2) | pp.151~184 | number of Cited : 0

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ABSTRACT: This study aims to explore changes in discourse and future signals related to abandoned mine regions by analyzing 9,898 Naver online news articles published between January 1, 2021, and December 31, 2025. The analysis employs TF-IDF, Degree of Visibility (DoV), Degree of Diffusion (DoD), and time-weighted Keyword Emergence Map (KEM) and Keyword Issue Map (KIM). The results show that “Kangwon Land” appeared as the most prominent keyword throughout the entire period, while keywords such as “projects,”“tourism,”“support,”and “development” were also repeatedly identified. This indicates that the existing path centered on casinos, tourism, and regional development funds continues to strongly structure the discourse on abandoned mine regions. According to the KEM and KIM analyses, “mining operations,” “population,” and “transition” were identified as strong signals, while “Dogye-eup,” “regional disappearance,” “Jangseong,” “manufacturing,” “recovery,” and “vitality” were classified as weak signals. These results suggest that the discourse on abandoned mine regions maintains path dependency centered on support and development, while also expanding place-based transition agendas in connection with the renaming of abandoned mine regions as coal industry transition regions, mine closures, responses to regional disappearance, and discussions on industrial diversification. However, weak signals are not designed to directly verify policy performance or local living-condition changes; rather, they work as exploratory indicators that capture the potential for issue formation within news reports. Therefore, follow-up verification is required by combining regional media, local council and budget data, employment and population indicators, project performance indicators, and interviews with residents.

Why Do Apartment Housing Policies Fail in Korea? Jeonse-Driven Leverage and Policy Ineffectiveness

Bae Se Young | 2026, 33(2) | pp.185~216 | number of Cited : 0

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Journal of Asia-Pacific Studies 2024 KCI Impact Factor : 0.59

2026, Vol.33, No.2