K-diplomacy: The Global Korea Initiative in South Korea’s Foreign Policy | K-diplomacia: A iniciativa Global Korea na política externa sul-coreana
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.12957/rmi.2025.91174Keywords:
Public Diplomacy, South Korea, Global KoreaAbstract
South Korea stands out as one of the most prominent cases of cultural success in the contemporary international arena, a status achieved through media resources such as television, cinema, and pop music. Within the context of the expanding so-called “Korean Wave,” the country has also sought to advance its foreign policy objectives, including strengthening diplomatic relations, recognition as a middle power, and more active participation in the international system. In this interplay between cultural rise and foreign policy interests, the Global Korea initiative was launched in 2008. This article analyzes the Global Korea initiative through the lens of public diplomacy, aiming to understand how it has been operationalized in support of South Korea’s foreign policy goals.
Downloads
References
Ayhan, K. (2017) “Korea’s Soft Power and Public Diplomacy Under Moon Jae-In Administration: A Window of Opportunity”. In K. AYHAN (ed.), Korea’s Soft Power and Public Diplomacy. Seoul: Hangang Network, pp. 13–32.
Bedeski, R. E. (1994). The transformation of South Korea: reform and reconstruction in the Sixth Republic under Roh Tae Woo, 1987–1992. London and New York: Routledge.
Bijos, L. M. D.; Arruda, V. (2010). ‘A diplomacia cultural como instrumento de política externa brasileira’. Revista Diálogos, 13(1), pp. 33-53. Disponível em:<https://portalrevistas.ucb.br/index.php/RDL/article/view/2912>. [Acesso em: 19 abr. 2024].
Breznican, A. (2012). New documents explain Pentagon, CIA cooperation on Zero Dark Thirty. 2012. Disponível em: <https://ew.com/article/2012/08/28/zero-dark-thirty- documents>. [Acesso em: 19 abr. 2024].
Clarke, D. (2020). Cultural diplomacy. Oxford: Oxford Research Encyclopedia of International.
Dinnie, K. (2008). Nation branding: Concepts, issues, practice. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann.
Duncombe, C. (2019). ‘Digital diplomacy: Emotion and identity in the public realm’. The Hague Journal of Diplomacy, 14(1-2), p. 102-116. Disponível em: . [Acesso em: 19 abr. 2024].
Gabinete do Presidente da República da Coreia. (2009). Global Korea: the national security strategy of the Republic of Korea. Disponível em: <http://17cwd.eng.pa.go.kr/government/golbalkorea/globalkorea.php>. [Acesso em: 30 out. 2025].
Gilboa, E. (2016). “Public Diplomacy”. In G. MAZZOLENI (ed.), The International Encyclopedia of Political Communication., pp.1-9.
Gregory, B. (2011). ‘American public diplomacy: Enduring characteristics, elusive transformation’. The Hague Journal of Diplomacy, 6(3-4), pp. 351-372. Disponível em:<https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:153749830>. Acesso em: 19 abr. 2024.
Hermanns, H. (2013). ‘National role conceptions in the ‘Global Korea’ foreign policy strategy’. The Korean Journal of International Studies, 11(1), pp. 55-82. Disponível em:<https://doi.org/10.14731/kjis.2013.06.11.1.55>. Acesso em: 19 abr. 2024.
Horton, P.; Saunders, J. (2012). ‘The 'East Asian' Olympic Games: What of Sustainable Legacies?’. The International Journal of the History of Sport, 29. pp. 887-911. Disponível em: <https://doi.org/10.1080/09523367.2011.617587>. [Acesso em: 19 abr. 2024].
Ikenberry, J. e Mo, J. (2013) The Rise of Korean Leadership: Emerging Powers and Liberal International Order. New York: Palgrave.
Istad, F. (2019) “A Strategic Approach to Public Diplomacy in South Korea”. In K. AYHAN (ed.), Korea’s Public Diplomacy. Seoul: Hangang Network, pp. 49-80.
Jin, D. Y. (2012). ‘Hallyu 2.0: the new korean wave in the creative industry’. The Journal of International Institute, 2(1), pp. 3-7. Disponível em: <http://hdl.handle.net/2027/spo.11645653.0002.102>. [Acesso em: 20 jan. 2025].
John, V. J. (2015). ‘Globalization, National Identity and Foreign Policy: Understanding 'Global Korea'’. The Copenhagen Journal of Asian Studies. 33(2), pp. 39-57. Disponível em: <https://rauli.cbs.dk/index.php/cjas/article/view/4965>. [Acesso em: 19 mar. 2025].
Jones, R. S. (2021). The Korean New Deal. Disponível em: https://keia.org/the-peninsula/the-korean-new-deal/. [Acesso em: 15 abr. 2025].
Kamon, B. (2022). ‘The Hallyu policies of the Korean government’. Journal of Language and Culture, 41(2), pp. 1–24. Disponível em: <https://so03.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/JLC/article/view/265736>. [Acesso em: 30 out. 2025].
Kim, T. Y.; Jin, D. Y. (2016). ‘Cultural Policy in the Korean Wave: An Analysis of Cultural Diplomacy Embedded in Presidential Speeches’. International Journal of Communication, [S.l.], 10, pp. 5514-5534. Disponível em: <https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/view/5128>. [Acesso em: 20 jan. 2025].
Kim, B. R. (2015). ‘Past, present and future of Hallyu (Korean Wave)’. American International Journal of Contemporary Research, 5(5), pp. 154-160. Disponível em:<https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:32194632>. [Acesso em: 19 abr. 2024].
Koo, M G. (2009). ‘Embracing Asia, South Korean Style: Preferential Trading Arrangements as Instruments of Foreign Policy’. EAI Issue Briefing n. MASI 2009-08. Seul: East Asia Institute. Disponível em: <https://www.eai.or.kr/new/en/etc/search_view.asp?intSeq=16828&board=eng_reports>. [Acesso em: 14 abr. 2025].
Lee, J. (2010). ROK’s “New Asia Initiative” in 2010: Direction and Tasks. IFANS Focus, 06E. Seul: The Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security, 2010. Disponível em: <https://www.ifans.go.kr/knda/ifans/eng/pblct/PblctView.do?csrfPreventionSalt=null&pblctDtaSn=10541&menuCl=P11&clCode=P11&koreanEngSe=ENG&pclCode=&chcodeId=&searchCondition=searchAll&searchKeyword=&pageIndex=47>. Acesso em: 14 abr. 2025.
Lee, S. J. (2011) “South Korean Soft Power and How South Korea Views the Soft Power of Others”. In S. J. LEE and J. MELISSEN (eds.), Public Diplomacy and Soft Power in East Asia. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 139–161.
Lekakis, N. (2019). ‘The limits of soft power-sports diplomacy templates in IR research’. E-International relations. Disponível em: <https://www.e-ir.info/2019/06/23/the-limits-of-soft-power-sports-diplomacy-templates-in-ir-research/>. [Acesso em: 19 mar. 2025].
Ma, Y. S.; Song, J.; Moore, D. E. (2012). ‘Korea’s Public Diplomacy: A New Initiative for the Future’. Seul: Asan Institute for Policy Studies, 39, pp. 1-25. Disponível em: <https://en.asaninst.org/contents/issue-brief-no-39-koreas-public-diplomacy-a-new-initiative-for-the-future/>. [Acesso em: 19 mar. 2025].
Ministério das Relações Exteriores da República da Coreia. (2022). Introduction of the Public Diplomacy & Policies. Disponível em: <https://www.mofa.go.kr/eng/wpge/m_26885/contents.do>. [Acesso em: 02 mar. 2025].
Ministério da Cultura, Esportes e Turismo da República da Coreia. (2024). Framework Act on the Promotion of Hallyu Industries. Disponível em: <https://elaw.klri.re.kr/eng_service/lawView.do?hseq=70057&lang=ENG>. [Acesso em 30 out. 2025].
Mo, J. (2016) ‘South Korea’s middle power diplomacy: A case of growing compatibility between regional and global roles’, International Journal, 71(4), pp. 587–607. Disponível em: <https://doi.org/10.1177/0020702016686380> [Acesso em: 15. abr. 2025].
Nye, J. S. (2008). ‘Public diplomacy and soft power’. The annals of the American academy of political and social science, 616(1), pp. 94-109. Disponível em: <https://www.jstor.org/stable/25097996>. [Acesso em: 02 mar. 2025].
Nye, J. S., Jr. (2019). ‘Soft Power and Public Diplomacy Revisited’. The Hague Journal of Diplomacy, 14(1-2), 7-20. Disponível em: <https://brill.com/view/journals/hjd/14/1-2/article-p7_2.xml>. [Acesso em: 30 out. 2025]
Oliveira, C. V. A. The Hallyu Wave as a Strategic Soft Power Tool: South Korea’s Cultural Diplomacy in the 21st Century. (2025). Em SciELO Preprints. Disponível em: <https://doi.org/10.1590/SciELOPreprints.12388>. [Acesso em: 30 out. 2025].
Otmazgin, N. (2011). ‘A Tail that Wags the Dog? Cultural Industry and Cultural Policy in Japan and South Korea’. Journal of Comparative Policy Analysis, 13(3), pp. 307-325. Disponível em: <http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13876988.2011.565916>. [Acesso em: 02 mar. 2025].
Ramaprasad, J. (1983). Media diplomacy: In search of a definition. Gazette, 31(1), pp. 69-78. Disponível em:<http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/001654928303100107>. [Acesso em: 02 mar. 2025].
Rashica, V. (2018). ‘The benefits and risks of digital diplomacy’. Seeu Review, 13(1), pp. 75-89. Disponível em: <https://www.researchgate.net/publication/330572468_The_Benefits_and_Risks_of_Digital_Diplomacy>. [Acesso em: 13 abr. 2025].
Silva, A. M.; Viana, T. S.; Oliveira, A. C. G. (2024). ‘Dribles, Dança e Diplomacia O pop sul-coreano e o basquete estadunidense como ferramentas diplomáticas para a Coreia do Norte’. Revista de Estudos Internacionais, 15, pp. 206-228. Disponível em: <https://revista.uepb.edu.br/REI/pt_BR/article/view/3400>. [Acesso em: 30 out. 2025].
Sotiriu, S. (2015) “Digital diplomacy: Between promises and reality”. In C. BJOLA and M. HOLMES (eds.), Digital Diplomacy. London: Routledge, pp. 33–51.
World Bank Group (s.d). KoDi: Korea Digital Development Program. Disponível em: <https://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/kodi/overview> [Acesso em: 11 abr. 2025].
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Thaisa Viana, Aline Mendes , Alanna Itajahy

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
The Copyrights of articles published in Revista Mural Internacional belong to their respective author (s), with the first publication rights assigned to Mural International, with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License, which allows sharing the work with an acknowledgment of authorship and initial publication in this journal. Due to the fact that they appear in Mural Internacional, the articles are free to use, with mandatory attribution of authorship, for use in educational and non-commercial applications, according to the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License adopted by this journal.
This work is licensed under a license Creative Commons Atribuição 4.0 Internacional.
