Episode 41 | South Korea: The Tech Powerhouse on the Cyber Frontline

Episode 41

South Korea: The Tech Powerhouse on the Cyber Frontline

Released on October 7, 2021


In any list of influential tech powers in the world, South Korea would undoubtedly be near the top.

In this episode we delve into how the country achieved this status, transforming the nature of its economy and producing global industry leaders like Samsung and LG Electronics.

But we’ll also look to the future, and at how South Korea is working with the international community to build up the world’s tech infrastructure. How is Seoul cooperating with other regions and countries when it comes to issues such as regulating the internet? How are issues of data collection and privacy being received in Korean society?

Like most globally connected powers, South Korea is also highly attuned to the risk of cyber attacks - particularly given its volatile neighbour North Korea.

We are delighted to have Dr Michael Reiterer, former EU ambassador to Korea, and now the distinguished professor for international security and diplomacy at the Institute for European Studies in Brussels, on the show. He has specialized in the EU’s relations with Korea and Japan during his career, particularly in the security realm.

Also joining us is Dr Robyn Klingler-Vidra, a reader in International Political Economy at King’s College, London, whose research has focused on how east and southeast nations have developed their tech sectors.

For this episode, we are once again partnering with the Centre for Security, Diplomacy and Strategy at the Brussels School of Governance.

Michael Reiterer (@M_Reiterer)

Michael Reiterer served as Ambassador of the European Union to the Republic of Korea from 2017-2020. Previously he was Principal Advisor at the Asia and Pacific Department, European External Action Service (EEAS), Brussels; EU-Ambassador to Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein (2007-2011), and Minister/Deputy Head of the EU-Delegation to Japan (2002-2006). In 2005, he was appointed adjunct professor for international politics at the University of Innsbruck, Associate Researcher at Vrije Universiteit Brussel in 2018, and Professor at the Brussels School of Governance in 2020. He earned his Dr. juris at the University of Innsbruck and holds diplomas in international relations from the Johns Hopkins University/Bologna Center and the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva.

Robyn Klingler Vidra (@RobynVidra)

Robyn Klingler-Vidra is a Senior Lecturer in Political Economy at King's College London. Prior to joining the Department of International Development, she was a Lecturer in the Department of European and International Studies, also at King's. She was concurrently the Head of Policy Research at the Coller Institute of Venture at Tel Aviv University from 2013-2016. Her public sector experience includes internships with the Economic Section of the US State Department Foreign Service and in the Westminster office of a UK Member of Parliament. She led the World Economic Forum’s annual UK Executive Opinion Survey on global competitiveness from 2009 to 2018. She obtained her B.A. in Political Science at the University of Michigan and her M.Sc. and Ph.D. in International Political Economy from the London School of Economics.