Abstract

This paper examines the trends in geopolitical research in Korea, highlighting that while the classical geopolitical approach remains dominant, new approaches such as feminist geopolitics and urban geopolitics are emerging, spearheaded by critical geographers. In particular, it analyzes the significance and implications of the new geopolitical-geoeconomic strategy of the Biden administration in the United States for understanding the era of polycrisis. By examining the Indo-Pacific Strategy of Freedom, Peace, and Prosperity promoted by the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, it also critically explores the mainstream geopolitical discourse in Korean society, which seems entrenched within the framework of U.S.-ROK alliance. The paper further argues that geopolitical research should move beyond the state-centered strategic approach and actively incorporate insights from various social theories, such as feminism and postcolonialism, into the analysis of the interplay between space and power. In doing so, it posits that overcoming the limitations of contemporary geopolitics requires a focus on how geopolitical conflict and violence disrupt people’s daily lives and how resistance to these forces can transform the prevailing geopolitical order.