Not So Universal? The Search for Indigenous International Relations Theories in South Korea

This paper looks at and assesses the interest in and the passion for indigenous IR theory which has been proposed for more than half a century in South Korea. South Korea has experienced so many precious chances to think about IR both as its ontological as well as epistemological base. Colonialism, sovereign independence, national partition, a civil war, ideological and military confrontations between the North and the South, and enduring influences of strong neighbors have been just a few elements of IR in South Korea. As such, IR in South Korea have been eventually overwhelmed by its ontological destiny with practical motivations for policy and politics. In this context, this paper evaluates South Korean scholars’ voices for indigenous theory in IR in the perspective of postcolonialism. In the second section, the paper investigates the current situation of IR studies, centering on the publications in the Korean Journal of International Studies for the last decade. This short survey shows how much Korean scholars have tried to overcome their academic dependence on the American theories. Also the paper will discuss the implications of these surveys on the voices for indigenous theories. The final section suggests the missions and future agendas for South Korean IR scholars to contemplate in terms of three dimensions -- the scope of theory, decolonization, and the search for a trading zone between different paradigms.