Katrin Fraser Katz is a former director for Japan, Korea, and oceanic affairs on the staff of the National Security Council, where she served from 2007 to 2008. Previously, she was a special assistant to the assistant secretary for international organization affairs at the U.S. Department of State and an analyst at the Central Intelligence Agency. Dr. Katz’s research, which has been supported by grants from the Korea Foundation and the Horowitz Foundation for Social Policy, explores the interplay of cooperation and conflict in East Asia’s political, economic, and security dynamics. In 2017, she received the inaugural Sherman Family Korea Emerging Scholar Lecture Series award from the Korea Society. She holds a Ph.D. in political science from Northwestern University; a master’s degree in East Asian and international security studies from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, where she was awarded the John C. Perry Scholarship for East Asian Studies; and a bachelor’s degree, magna cum laude, in international relations and Japanese from the University of Pennsylvania.

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CSIS Commission Report on North Korea Policy & Extended Deterrence

A bipartisan, 14-member Commission on the Korean Peninsula has looked at recommendations for strengthening extended deterrence and reexamining North Korea policy. Join us as members of the Commission discuss recommendations from our report.

Event by John J. Hamre , Joseph S. Nye Jr. , Victor Cha , Katrin Fraser Katz , and Vincent Brooks — January 19, 2023

Photo: Airbus DS 2022

Recommendations on North Korea Policy and Extended Deterrence

A new report from the CSIS Commission on the Korean Peninsula offers actionable recommendations for navigating North Korea policy and strengthening U.S. extended deterrence.

Report by John J. Hamre , Joseph S. Nye Jr. , Victor Cha , and Katrin Fraser Katz — January 19, 2023

Photo: PUNGGYE-RI NUCLEAR TEST SITE – SEPTEMBER 29, 2022 COPYRIGHT © AIRBUS DS 2022

North Korea Policy & Extended Deterrence

Amid new challenges, the United States and South Korea must re-examine its approach to North Korea policy and U.S. extended deterrence. Explore the recommendations of the CSIS Commission on the Korean Peninsula in this interactive report.

Digital Report by John J. Hamre , Joseph S. Nye Jr. , Victor Cha , and Katrin Fraser Katz — January 19, 2023

Photo: Airbus DS 2022

The Burgeoning North Korea Missile Threat

North Korea has significantly increased the tempo of its missile tests. Each of North Korea’s missile tests has gotten Pyongyang closer to its goal of developing a credible, survivable nuclear weapons delivery system that can target the U.S. homeland. What comes next?

Report by Victor Cha and Katrin Fraser Katz — April 29, 2022

Photo: JUNG YEON-JE/AFP via Getty Images

North Korea’s Covid-19 Lockdown: Current Status and Road Ahead

A group of experts looked at the impact of Covid-19 on North Korea, including current situation, effects of the border lockdown, broader impact on society and markets, as well as path going forward, possibility of easing restrictions, and feasibility of humanitarian aid.

Report by Victor Cha , Katrin Fraser Katz , and J. Stephen Morrison — March 9, 2022

Photo: CLEMENT MAHOUDEAU/AFP via Getty Images

JoongAng Ilbo-CSIS Forum 2021

The eleventh annual Joongang Ilbo-CSIS Forum will explore Korea's survival equation in the era of U.S.-China confrontation and the road to denuclearization and peace on the Korean peninsula.

Event by John J. Hamre , Victor Cha , and Michael J. Green , Bonny Lin , Katrin Fraser Katz , Hong Seok-Hyun , Wi Sung-Lac , Kim Sung-Han , Yun Byung-Se , Song Min-Soon , Park Myung-Lim , Shin Kak-Soo , Koh Yu-hwan — December 13, 2021

Photo: JoongAng Ilbo

After Kim Jong Un

Last month’s media frenzy over the health and possible death of the North Korean leader Kim Jong Un seemed in many respects like an indulgent diversion. 

Newsletter by Katrin Fraser Katz and Victor Cha — May 18, 2020

Photo: ED JONES/AFP/Getty Images
The Impossible State

Revenge Politics

Andrew, Dr. Cha and Dr. Katz discuss the on-going South Korea-Japan trade dispute, which direction it might go, and what role the U.S. could play in it all.

Podcast Episode by H. Andrew Schwartz , Victor Cha , and Katrin Fraser Katz — August 23, 2019

CSIS The Impossible State North Korea