Korea Chair Visiting Fellows

The Office of the Korea Chair regularly hosts Visiting Fellows to deepen mutual understanding and promote policy studies in support of the U.S.-Korea alliance

Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) hosts about 60-70 Visiting Fellows at any given time for a variety of countries and backgrounds. CSIS Visiting Fellows benefit from the bipartisan, independent platform CSIS provides while CSIS benefits from the unique and diverse perspectives Visiting Fellows bring.

The Korea Chair Visiting Fellow Program welcomes motivated public and private sector professionals with research interests on any aspects of U.S.-Korea policy to join CSIS for a fixed period of study in the heart of Washington, D.C. Through their studies and experiences at CSIS, the Korea Chair Visiting Fellows will be able to build the lasting networks and knowledge critical to the future foundation of the alliance.

Program Benefits

The Visiting Fellows have valuable opportunities to meet with policymakers, government officials and world class experts through access to all public events hosted by the Korea Chair and other programs at CSIS. Visiting Fellows are also encouraged to enjoy the benefit of attending countless conferences held elsewhere in Washington, D.C.

The Visiting Fellows are provided with a CSIS identification card, a CSIS email account, CSIS business cards, and other privileges. The Visiting Fellows can also request informal feedback from and interviews with CSIS experts, schedules permitting. Visiting Fellows can request administrative support offered by the Korea Chair.

Program Information

The Korea Chair offers Resident Visiting Fellowships with the option to choose between a private office, shared office, or a shared workstation (for multiple fellows to share).

Program Cost: The program cost includes workspace rent, J visa facilitation, CSIS email account, computer, printing cost, and program administration. Visiting Fellows should ideally be sponsored by their home institutions for a “sabbatical” period of study in the United States.

Program Period: The Visiting Fellows Programs at CSIS are for a period of one year. However, the length of stay can be adjusted upon the Visiting Fellow’s request.

For more information, please contact our office at KoreaChair@csis.org.

Current Visiting Fellows

Mr. Kwangil Noh began his fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in December 2022. As a professional military officer in the Republic of Korea (ROK) Army, Mr.Noh has contributed to designing the future combined defense system. He has previously worked at the ROK Ministry of National Defense for three years. For the first two and a half years, he served as an action officer for the wartime operational control (OPCON) transition, and for the final year, he was a defense foreign policy action officer in the office of the Minister. Mr.Noh’s areas of interest include U.S. military strategy, extended deterrence strategy, and wartime OPCON Transition to the ROK. He holds a Master’s degree in International Relations from both the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School and the Korean National Defense University.

Sangeun Lee began her fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in November 2022. She has served as Deputy Director at the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) of the Republic of Korea, where she also previously managed the MLRS and Sea Surveillance Radar Programs as Program Manager and contributed to the development of the Korean Fighter aircraft. In addition, she has made various contributions to increase Korea’s defense exports. She has been recognized for her outstanding service from the Korean government, including a presidential citation and Green Stripes Order of Service Merit of the Republic of Korea Civil Service. Ms. Lee’s research topic is “The Strengthening of Korea’s Defense Industrial Base and the Increase of Defense Exports Through an Analysis of the U.S. Defense Acquisition System and Cooperation Needs”. She holds an M.A. and completed her doctorate in Law from Dongguk University and also holds a Ph.D in Defense Acquisition Program from Kwangwoon University. She is the first doctorate graduate of the first Department of Defense Acquisition Program of the Republic of Korea.

Jeansuk Hong began his fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in December 2021. He has served as Director-General of the Intelligence and Analysis Bureau at the Ministry of Unification of the Republic of Korea, where he has served for more than two decades. He also worked at the Blue House (the Korean Presidential Office of National Security) in both the Moon Jae-in administration and the Park Geun-hye administration. Throughout his career, he has mainly worked on establishing strategies for North Korea and negotiating with them. So far, he has participated in more than 40 inter-Korean dialogues and has had many opportunities to communicate with high-ranking North Korean officials. He received his M.A. from The University of Tokyo in 2013 and his B.A. from The University of Seoul in 1999.

Mikyeong Won began her fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in August 2022. She has served as Deputy Director at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy of the Republic of Korea, where her work specialized in trade policy and negotiations. She has worked on multilateral and bilateral trade negotiations and policy-based work at divisions of WTO, FTA implementation, and FTA policy planning. She also has work experiences in the United Nations in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, as well as Bangkok, Thailand, before joining the South Korean government in 2016. She holds an M.A. in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University and a B.A. in Sociology from Korea University.

Jae-jun Han began his fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in October 2022. He has worked as a senior researcher at the Korea Institute of Nuclear Nonproliferation and Control (KINAC), where he served as a director of the Planning and Budget Division and also a scientific secretary of the Korean Center of Excellence (International Nuclear Nonproliferation and Security Academy). His recent research interests cover the potential risk of nuclear proliferation by competition in exporting nuclear power plants and in developing small modular reactors (SMR), as well as the strategy regarding implementation plans of DPRK denuclearization under the ROK-U.S. global comprehensive strategic alliance. He has investigated the applications of computational methods, including the analysis of unstructured data and satellite imagery for countering nuclear proliferation, and the structural integrity assessment of nuclear piping components. He studied at the University of Manchester as an academic visitor and received his B.S. and Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from Korea University.

Former Visiting Fellows

Hyejung Koo began her fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in December 2021. As a professional military officer in the Republic of Korea Army, Ms. Koo has contributed to designing Army Innovation Policies at the Army Headquarters. She also served as an instructor of the Joint Forces Military University and researched Ground Operations and Military Innovation. Her research interest is technological innovation mechanism in middle-power countries and their strategic choices. Considering the U.S.-ROK alliance and the North Korea threat, she is studying military innovation policy and the dynamics of the current space competition. She holds a Master’s in Industrial Engineering from Seoul National University and a Bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering from the Korea Military Academy. Also, she is currently pursuing her Ph.D. at the Graduate School of Science and Technology Policy at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAKIST).

Mr. Sangwoo Lee began his fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in December 2021. He has served as Director at the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) of the Republic of Korea. At DAPA, Mr. Lee has contributed to works including domestic defense industry policy, defense R&D policy, and planning mid-term defense acquisition program. Mr. Lee’s research topic is “Methods of Improving Defense R&D capability through Civil-Military Cooperation”. He holds an M.A. in public policy from Duke University and a B.A. in mechanical and aerospace engineering from Seoul National University.

Mr. Kijung Kim began his fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at the Center for Strategic and Interational Studies in July 2021. He currently works as a deputy editor at Maeil Business Newspaper in Korea, where he has covered issues related to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) in the Republic of Korea. While serving as the leader of the MOFA press corps in 2014, which consisted of about 70 Korean media outlets, he reported on diplomatic issues, including the Korea-U.S. summit and the Six Party Talks regarding North Korea's nuclear tests. He has also previously worked as a reporter for the Korea Daily in Los Angeles. His research interests include Korea's strategic choices in the era of the U.S.-China "technology war." He is also interested in the applications of statistics and artificial intelligence for analyzing issues on the Korean Peninsula as well as for predicting election results. He is a recipient of the LG Sangnam Press Foundation fellowship. He holds an MA from the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism at the University of Southern California and received his BA from Chung-Ang University.

Do Hoon Lee began his fellowship at the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in 2020. His research focuses on R&D innovation for rapid acquisition. He is the director of the Defense Program Analysis Division of the Korean Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA). Prior to his work at DAPA, he was a senior engineer at Samsung SDI. He holds a Ph.D degree in mechanical and aerospace engineering from Seoul National University.

Mr. Seunghyung Lee began his fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in December 2020. A professional military officer in the Republic of Korea Army, Mr. Lee has served in the service since 2008, upon commission as an officer. Mr. Lee’s areas of interest in research include US policy toward East Asia (North Korea), Military Strategy and US-China relations. Mr. Lee received his M.I.S. (Master of International Studies) from Seoul National University in 2018 and his B.A. from Korea Military Academy in 2008.

Namhee Lee began her fellowship at the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in January 2021. Her research topic is “Back on Track? The ROK-U.S. Alliance under a Biden Administration.” Ms. Lee currently works as a deputy general manager at the Economy & Policy Department at Channel A in South Korea. She has 18 years of experience as a reporter and anchor, first at the Dong-A Ilbo newspaper and later at its cable-television affiliate, Channel A. She has been specializing in political news since 2011, including the most recent presidential election and the general elections. She was responsible for the on-air presentation of the first summit between North Korea’s Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in as well as the subsequent meeting between Kim and U.S. President Donald Trump on Channel A in 2018. She holds a Master of Science in Technology Management in The State University of New York at Stony Brook and Bachelor of Art, Political Science from Sogang University.

Mr. Yeon Sik Kim began his fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in August 2020. He currently serves as a foreign service officer of the Korean Foreign Ministry, where he has served for more than two decades. In the Ministry, Mr. Kim mainly dealt with ROK-U.S. relations and U.S. foreign policy, including as Director of the ROK-US Security Cooperation Division II and as Deputy Director of North America Division I at the North American Affairs Bureau. He also worked at the Office of National Security, Blue House, in Korea from 2017 to 2019. For overseas assignments, he has had diverse experiences in the U.S., Asia, and Africa, including experience in opening the Korean Embassy at Maputo, Mozambique, in 2013. Mr. Kim finished his military service in the ROK Army in 1994. He received his M.A. from Columbia University in the city of New York in 2006 and his B.A. from Seoul National University in 1998.

Sumi Hong began her fellowship at the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in December 2019. Her research topic is "The Human Resource Management to Enhance Transparency and Professionality of Defense Acquisition Program Based on Advanced Cases". She is a grade four official in South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA), where she has contributed to works including Defense Science and Technology policy and Defense Acquisition Program system. She holds an M.A. in Engineering and a B.A. in civil engineering from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST).
 

In Young Park began her fellowship at the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in August 2019. Her research topic is “Ways to Build a Peace Regime on the Korean Peninsula and Navigate the Challenges Facing the U.S.-ROK Alliance.” Ms. Park is a deputy assistant editor at the international news desk at Yonhap News Agency in South Korea, where she pitch, write and edit articles on a wide variety of international issues; stories range from the migrant crisis and rise of nationalism in Europe to events leading up to the Trump-Kim Singapore summit and the United States and South Korea's ongoing efforts to denuclearize the Korean peninsula. She has worked at Yonhap since 2004, where she has been part of the business, metro, and culture news desk, as well as a staff reporter for the Gangwon province division.  She was a participant in the 2018 Korea-United States Journalists Exchange Program hosted by the Korea Press Foundation and the East-West Center. She has a Bachelor of Law from Korea University.
 

Ms. Eunjeong Jeon began her fellowship at the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in December 2017. She has served as Director at the Ministry of Unification, Republic of Korea. Ms. Jeon has contributed to works including unification policy, inter-Korean exchange and cooperation, inter-Korean dialogue, humanitarian aid to North Korea, and unification education. Ms. Jeon’s research interests include solutions for the North Korean nuclear issue and policies about North Korea for peace on the Korean Peninsula. She holds an M.A in Public Administration from Seoul National University and a B.A from Ewha Womans University.
 

Mr. Jun-Hyun Cho began his fellowship at the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in December 2018. His research topic is “Defense Research and Development Strategy for the Fourth Industrial Revolution.” Mr. Cho is the Director of the Defense Trade Promotion Division of the Defense Industry Promotion Bureau at the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA). He previously was Director of the International Contract Team for Defence Parts, and Deputy Director of the Acquisition Policy Division, Legal Affairs Office and Defense Industry Policy Division. He has a Bachelor’s degree in Spanish Literature from Korea University and Master’s degree in Business from Alcala University in Spain.

Mr. Chang Moon Yoon began his fellowship at the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in December 2017. His research topic is “How to Develop U.S.-ROK Alliance through Bilateral Business Cooperation in the Defense Industry”. Mr. Yoon is the director of International Policy and Cooperation Division at the Republic of Korea Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA). He held a number of key positions at DAPA: Director of Military Robot project team, member/Director of Korea Combat Training Center project team, and Deputy Director of the Defense Industry Policy Division. Mr. Yoon holds an M.A. in Public Affairs from Indiana University and a B.A. in Aerospace Engineering from Seoul National University.

Mr. Dongchan Park began his fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in February 2017. His research topic is “The strategy of Korea on the New United Nations Resolution.” He has served in a number of key positions with the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea, including legislative staff, Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee; director of administrative budget analysis, National Assembly Budget Office; and director of the Social Program Evaluation Division, National Assembly Budget Office. Mr. Park holds an LL.M. from the School of Law at the University of Washington in Seattle and a B.A. from Chung-Ang University in Seoul.
 

Aeseo Park began her fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in December 2016. Her research topic is “Weapon System Acquisition and Defense Export Strategy for Economic Defense Capability Establishment.” Ms. Park is fourth grade official in South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA), where she has served as deputy director in the Defense Industry Policy Division, Defense Trade Promotion Division, and International Contracts Department. She holds a B.A from Ewha Womans University and completed the master’s certificate program in public administration at Seoul National University.

Mr. Tae Kon Kim began his fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in March 2015. His research topic is “Future development of ROK-U.S. alliance through defense industrial cooperation and U.S. policy for defense technology control, improvement of foreign military sales system and U.S. missile defense system.” Mr. Kim is the director of electronic warfare team at the Republic of Korea Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA). He held a number of key positions at DAPA: as director of International Policy and Cooperation Division, director of Financial Planning Division, director of Force Planning Division, director of Acquisition Policy Division, and director of Korea Defense Industry Trade Support Center. Mr. Kim holds an M.A. in public policy from Duke University and a B.A. in public administration from Sungkyunkwan University.

Mr. Taehyung Park began his fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in August 2014. His research topic is “South Korea’s approach to unification based on Trust-Building Process and the South Korean Strategy to participate in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).” Mr. Park is the director of the Legislative Request and Petition Center at the South Korean National Assembly. He has served in a number of key posts at the National Assembly: as director of the Proceedings Division at the Proceedings Bureau; as director of the Bills Division at the Proceedings Bureau; and as legislative staff of the National Policy Committee and the National Assembly Steering Committee. Mr. Park holds a B.A. in business administration and an M.A. in public administration from Seoul National University. He also received an M.P.A. from the John. F. Kennedy School at Harvard University.

Mr. Eun Ho Gang began his fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in March 2014. His research topic is “ROK and U.S. cooperation in innovative weapon system acquisition strategies, defense technology, and R&D policies in response to current and future threats from North Korea.” Mr. Gang is Director General of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA). He has previously served as Director General for Planning and Coordination, Director General of the Guided Weapon Program Department, and Director General for Defense Technology Control. In addition to his posts at DAPA, he served as Deputy Secretary to the President for National Defense in the ROK Presidential Office. Mr. Gang received a M.A. from Duke University and Yonsei University. He completed his doctorate at Yonsei University.

General Seung Jo Jung (ROK Army, Ret.) served as the 37th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. General Jung began his military career upon graduation and began his commission from the ROK Military Academy in 1976. During the span of over 37 years, he has led ROK and ROK-U.S. forces in multiple command posts: Deputy Commander, ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command; Commander, Ground Component Command; Commander, 1st ROK Army; Commander, 2nd Corps; Commander, 1st Infantry Division; and Chief of Operations, 3rd ROK Army. General Jung also served as Director of Civil and Psychological Operations, Joint Chiefs of Staff; Director of the Policy Planning Bureau, Ministry of National Defense; and Commanding General, Peace and Reconstruction Division (“Zaytun”) in the Multi-National Division-Northeast in Irbil, Iraq. General Jung earned his M.S. in Management from the Graduate School of Yonsei University, and his B.A. from the ROK Military Academy. He also attended the ROK Army Staff College and United States Army War College.

Mr. Sung Jin Kim began his fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in August 2013. He is Assistant Editor of International News Desk IV for Yonhap News Agency. He has filed news articles in both Korean and English and has experience providing dispatches from North Korea and Jerusalem. He served as an editing member and columnist of the Weekly Journalists Association of Korea. He also served as an executive board member of the association. Mr. Kim contributed to the Saturday broadcast of Weekly International News on KBS 1 Radio from 2006 to 2012. Mr. Kim’s research interests include U.S.-North Korea relations and Northeast Asia. Mr. Kim holds a MBA in finance, banking/strategy, and global management from the Korea Development Institute (KDI) School of Public Policy and Management. Mr. Kim received his B.A. in English language and literature from Seoul National University.

Publication

Mr. Kwangmook Kim began his fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in August 2012. Mr. Kim currently serves as Assistant Chief for Budget Analysis at the National Assembly Budget Office, a post he has held since 2014. Previously, he was Staff Director of the Strategy and Finance Committee (2009-2012). Mr. Kim also serves as International Affairs Director of the Korea Public Law Association. He has held a number of posts with the National Assembly Secretariat, serving as Vice Director General of the Inter-Parliamentary Affairs Bureau, Chief of the Protocol Division, and Chief of the Financial Legislation Division. In addition to his posts with the National Assembly, he served as a member of the Advisory Panel for Financial Legislation Research of the Korea Legislation Research Institute. Mr. Kim completed his doctorate at the Graduate School of Law at Seoul National University. He received his M.A. from the Graduate School of Law at Seoul National University and his B.A. in English literature from Sogang University.

Mr. Jae-Kyung Park began his fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in February 2012. He is a Korean diplomat by profession, with experience in overseas missions at the Korean embassies in Yangon, Myanmar, Belgrade, Serbia, and London, United Kingdom. From 2008 through 2011, Mr. Park was one of the key officials in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in designing ROK policies in East Asian multilateral diplomacy, including the ASEAN+3, the East Asia Summit, and the ASEAN Regional Forum. Mr. Park’s research interests include U.S.-China relations in East Asia. Mr. Park received his M.A. from the Fletcher School at Tufts University in 2001 and his B.A. from Seoul National University in 1992.

Publications

Ambassador Ho-Jin Lee served as a foreign service officer of the ROK for over three decades, and his career has covered the United States, Europe, and East Asia, specializing in the ROK-U.S. alliance, East Asian security, arms control and nonproliferation, and nuclear energy policy. He was most recently the ROK ambassador to Finland (2008-2010), and he has also served as Ambassador to Hungary (2003-2006) and as ranking Ambassador to the United Nations (2001-2003). In a personal capacity, he worked for the UN secretary general as a member of the UN Advisory Board on Disarmament (2004-2008) and as its chairman (2007). Recently, he was a guest scholar at the Brookings Institution (Foreign Policy, Center for Northeast Asian Policy Studies). Ambassador Lee is currently a senior advisor at Yulchon Law Firm in Seoul, Korea.

Publication

General Sung-Chool Lee (ROK Army, Ret.) began his fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in March 2011. A retired general in the ROK, General Lee served as Deputy Commander of ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command and Commander of the Ground Component Command following his promotion to Four-Star General in 2008. As the Commanding General, he planned and executed tasks in preparation for transfer of wartime operational control from the United States to the ROK. In 2010, General Lee served as Security Adviser to President Lee Myung-bak on the Presidential Special Security Review Team in the investigation of the March 29 sinking of the Cheonan. General Lee holds a B.A. from the ROK Military Academy and received a MBA from Chonbuk National University. He previously served as commander of the 5th Corps, ROK Army, and as chief director of strategy planning, J5 at ROK Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Publication

Mr. Ilkwon Kim began his fellowship with the Office of the Korea Chair at CSIS in September 2010. Since the early 1990s, Mr. Kim has held numerous positions in the government of the ROK and most recently served as Director of the Program Evaluation Bureau of the National Assembly’s Budget Office and Director of the National Assembly’s Inter-Parliamentary Organization Division. Mr. Kim is the recipient of several awards and honors for his academic achievements and government service. He received a M.A.L.D. in international relations from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University (2007), an M.A. in national security policy from Korea National Defense University (2001), and a B.A. from Seoul National University (1993).

Publications