The Two Koreas (Foreign Policy Association Headline Series No. 269)

The author Bruce Cumings believes it is particularly important and urgent for Americans to learn about, or deepen their knowledge of, the two Koreas. He writes in his introduction that the United States has an enormous responsibility for the state of the Korean peninsula today, a military role that could make it a belligerent in any new war overnight, and rapidly increasing trade with the Republic of Korea (ROK) in the south. If Americans fail to comprehend their past and present role in Korea, they do so at their peril, for Korea in the postwar period has had a knack for forcibly bringing itself to our attention. It is Korea's position in the international system that makes reconsideration and timely. In this volume Mr. Cumings explains the history that is behind these separate regimes, North and South Korea's political systems and economies.