Organizer: Yoonkyung Lee, State University of New York, Binghamton, USA Discussants: Bruce Cumings, University of Chicago, USA; Victor D. Cha, Georgetown University, USA; Jae-Jung Suh, International Christian University, USA; David C. Kang, University of Southern California, USA; Jong-Sung You, University of California, San Diego, USA; Seunghun Lee, University of Virginia, USA The sinking of Cheonan on March 26, 2010 has raised noble and challenging questions regarding the scientific investigation and security politics around the Korean peninsula. Was it just another bad behavior by North Korea, a condemned rogue state, or "demonizing" of the North Korean regime by South Korea and the United States? Why and what scientific questions do physicists raise about the findings of the Joint Investigation Team? Why do South Korea and the United States have a hard time in enticing China and Russia into their orchestrated policies punishing the North? Has the Cheonan incident created a fundamental change in the alignment of parties in the Six Party talks and does this reflect a changing security politics in Northeast Asia? Also, is the Obama administration’s North Korean policy a repetition of Bush or is there a possibility of shifting gears for the peace building process on the Korean peninsula?
The purpose of this roundtable is to bring in physicists, historians, and political scientists together and discuss the dissenting perspectives on the Cheonan incident and its aftermath. This discussion will help us better understand the politics of science related to the sinking of Cheonan and security dilemmas faced by the two Koreas and the neighboring states.
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