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Azhibekova AlmiraKazakh-American University

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Outline:• Geopolitical location of both • Geography• Ethnic homogeneity • Korean war• Divided families• Policy• Economy

3Geopolitical location

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GeographySize:•Roughly equal to UtahClimate:•Cold winters•Hot, wet summersTopography: Mountainous Population:

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Ethnic Homogeneity

“Racially pure”, Unique race

East Asian or mongoloid racial group

• Strong sense of racial identity • Self-identification as distinct

from other Asian nations

Korean language

• Altaic language group• Structurally identical to

Japanese• 60% of vocabulary borrowed

from Chinese • Distinct from both1. Not a tonal language2. Regional dialects – Just like U.S

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Ethnic homogeneity

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Divided Nation

•Japanese occupation 1910•Divided in 1945•After the WWII, Korea split into 2 countries at the 38 parallel •North Korea was communist with leader Kim II-sung and they had the support of Stalin•South Korea was a democratic Republic •Korean war 1950-53

-Enemies -Divided families -No mail, no trade, no visits, no phone calls

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A brief history of border conflict between North and South Korea

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After the war

• Estimates from 3 million to ½ million dead military on each side

• More than 2 million civilians died in North Korea• The 38 parallel remains exactly in place as it was

before• There has never been peace treaty, so the Korean

war has technically never ended• So the participants signed a cease fire, but not a

peace treaty. They still have infiltrations from the North and both sides exchange small arms fire

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In Pics: North Korea - South Korea military comparison

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The arch of Reunification is a sculptural arch located south of Pyongyang, the capital of Noth Korea.The concrete arch straddles the multi-laned Reunification Highway leading from Pyongyang to the DMZ. It consists of two Korean women in traditional dress, symbolizing the North and the South

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North, South Korea Trade Fire Along Border as Tensions Worsen

• North and South Korea exchanged fire across the DMZ in 2010• The incident started when North Korea fired a rocket at a

South Korean border area • Two South Korean soldiers were maimed by land mines• Last year, their ships exchanged warning fire near a disputed

Yellow Sea boundary.• South Korea has signaled more provocations may come as a

key North Korean national celebration approaches in October.• “The situation on the Korean peninsula will certainly become

more unstable if North Korea fires a long-range rocket ahead of the Oct. 10 anniversary of the founding of its Workers’ Party,”.

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The politics of North Korea

• JucheThe idea states that an individual is "the master of his destiny" and that the North Korean masses are to act as the "masters of the revolution and construction".

• Single party under a totalitarian family dictatorship

• Absolute monarchy

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Politics of the Republic of Korea

• GovernmentUnitary presidential constitutional republic• PresidentPark Geun-hye• Executive power is exercised by the

government• Legislative power is vested in both the

government and the National Assembly

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South Korean Economy• Today it is a high-tech industrialized economy.• Per capita GNP, only $100 in 1963, exceeded $9,800 in

2002.• Chaebols

- South Korean form of business conglomerate.- Samsung, Hyundai and LG

• Earlier- the centrally planned , government-directed investment model

• Now- market-oriented

Economic Overview

GDP(PPP) $1,541trillion

Real GDP Growth Rate 3.4%(27-10- 2011)

GDP per capita $29,997

Unemployment rate 3.1%

Inflation rate (CPI): 4.2%(Nov. 2011)

Industry Electronics,Telecommunications,Automobile production,ChemicalsShipbuilding,Steel

Trade :ExportsImports

47 Billion USD43.1 Billion USD

Major export markets China (23.2%)U.S. (10.1%)Japan (5.8%)Hong Kong (5.3%)Singapore (3.6%)

Major importers China (16.8%)Japan (15.3%)U.S.(9.0%)Saudi Arabia (6.1%)Australia (4.6%).

United States' sixth-largest trading partner and is the 12th-largest economy in the world

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South Korea vs. North KoreaEconomy1. Industries:• electronics,

telecommunications, automobile production, chemicals, shipbuilding, steel

2. Agriculture – products:• rice, root crops, barley,

vegetables, fruit; cattle, pigs, chickens, milk, eggs; fish

• 1.military products; machine building, electric power, chemicals; mining (coal, iron ore, limestone, magnesite, graphite, copper, zinc, lead, and precious metals), metallurgy; textiles, food processing; tourism

• 2. rice, corn, potatoes, soybeans, pulses; cattle, pigs, pork, eggs