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The Case for Kaesong: Fostering Korean Peace through Economic Ties
The Case for Kaesong: Fostering Korean Peace through Economic Ties
Table of Contents
  1. Executive Summary
  2. Introduction
  3. The Kaesong Industrial Complex’s Political Rise and Fall
  4. The Complex’s Past and Potential Economic Benefits
    1. Benefits for the South
    2. Benefits for the North
  5. The Complex’s Operational and Political Challenges
  6. Prospects for Reopening the Complex
    1. Prospects in South Korea
    2. Prospects in North Korea
  7. Conclusions and Recommendations
  8. Appendix A: Map of Korean Peninsula
  9. Appendix B: Questions and Answers about Crisis Group’s Quantitative Analysis of South Korean Complex Firms
  10. Appendix C: Timeline of Events Leading to the Kaesong Industrial Complex’s Closure
Kaesong Industrial Complex, 14 April 2015. CRISISGROUP
Report 300 / Asia

The Case for Kaesong: Fostering Korean Peace through Economic Ties

The Kaesong Industrial Complex, closed since 2016, was the most successful joint economic venture undertaken by North and South Korea. Reopening the manufacturing zone, with improvements to efficiency and worker protections, could help broker wider cooperation and sustain peace talks on the peninsula.