South Korea’s role in the global climate dialogue reflects its ongoing challenge to reconcile economic growth with environmental commitments, as it navigates the need to sustain its energy-intensive industrial base and the global push for more decisive climate action.

This balancing act has become even more relevant in light of the outcomes and discussions at the latest Conference of the Parties (COP28).

The summit, an intergovernmental conference on climate change, mirrored the familiar frustrations that characterized previous discussions, such as COP27 in Egypt and COP26 in Scotland. Notably, COP28’s host nation was the United Arab Emirates (UAE) — a major