Urban Diplomacy of Seoul as a Hub City in East Asia: A Comparative Study with Brussels in Europe (2021.11)
- Author : Dae Keun Cho, Nam-Kook Kim
- Publication : The Journal of Contemporary European Studies
- Publisher : The Korean Society Of Contemporary European Studies
- Volume : 39(4)
- Date : November, 2021
Abstract: Increasing debate on the international role of the city means decreasing validity of international order surrounding the sovereign state. Especially, COVID19 pandemic has disclosed the limit of sovereign state and cities have rise as supplement to or replacement for the sovereign state. This paper aims to suggest the role of Seoul after the COVID19 pandemic can be a hub city of East Asia with accumulated history of the fast growing city as the capital of Korea as well as a solid peace city identity of the divided Korean peninsula. We compare city of Seoul with Tokyo and Shanghai in terms of relative dominance to be a hub city in East Asia. We also trace the experiences of Brussels which could be a capital of the EU from its marginal past in the geopolitics of Europe. This paper finally suggests a strategy for Seoul to be a hub city of East Asia, which we can take from experiences of Brussels.