South Korea in the New Year faces various risks and opportunities in its foreign policy.

As President Yoon Suk-yeol is a few months away from starting his second year in office after setting the country on a path toward becoming what he dubbed a “global pivotal state,” Seoul will need to tread carefully. Intensifying U.S.-China rivalry in the Indo-Pacific and Russia’s continued war in Europe threaten supply chains that the ROK desperately needs and tests Seoul’s commitment to defending democratic values.

The prospects of improved relations with Tokyo remain tenuous and fragile, despite the