Abstract
This paper draws from Katzenstein’s (1996) hypothesis that identities or ‘varying constructions of nation and statehood’ (p. 46) play a role in state interactions. South Korea’s hosting of both the Asian and Olympic Games in the 1980s marked the beginnings of greater international visibility of the country. This was supported by chaebol-led industrialization and aggressive soft-power internationalization through the promotion of the ‘Korean Wave’ and English language learning the time period directly following the end of the Cold War (1990s-2000s). It was then that a significant change in ROK’s relations with India was observed, despite previous bilateral relations between the two states being relatively limited. Drawing largely from primary sources such as newspapers, statistics and official documents focusing on three variables in the ROK’s relation to India: economic (Hyundai), cultural (Hallyu) and social (Hybridity), the paper employs qualitative process tracing to explore the likelihood that ROK’s bilateral relationship with India possesses behavioral indicators that South Korea has assumed a role as a force for increased cooperation and mutual recognition in and between Asian countries in the post-Cold War world. For these purposes, Cooper’s (1997) and Jordaan’s (2003) analytical frameworks proposed for ‘middle powers’ will be employed.
Author Information
Frances Antoinette Cruz, University of the Philippines Diliman, Philippines
Paper Information
Conference: ACSS2015
Stream: International Relations and Human Rights
This paper is part of the ACSS2015 Conference Proceedings (View)
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