Frederic Spohr
Short vita
Frederic has been living in Asia since 2012 and worked as a reporter covering the region's profound economic and societal changes. In 2019, he joined the Foundation as Project Director for Thailand and Myanmar. In 2023, he assumed the role of Project Director in Seoul, overseeing the foundation's work in South and North Korea.
Frederic graduated from the Cologne School of Journalism and holds a Master's degree in Political Science from the University of Cologne.
Contributions
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“An Attempt to Ease Tensions”
For the first time since 2019, a summit meeting between China, Japan and South Korea is scheduled for end of May. China's aggressive approach and Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine have increased tensions in East Asia. But the states are closely intertwined economically. The summit in South Korea's capital is intended to counteract increasing bloc formation. Freiheit.org spoke to Frederic Spohr, head of the Korea office of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom in Seoul, about the background of the next meeting.
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Kim Jong Un abandons the goal of peaceful reunification
The ruler sends aggressive warnings to South Korea and the United States at the turn of the year. He seems hardly interested in a dialogue with liberal democracies anymore. This marks a drastic break with decades of state doctrine and alarms South Korea. Instead, North Korea continues to turn towards Russia. This raises tensions on the Korean Peninsula to a new peak.
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Historic summit at Camp David
US President Joe Biden, South Korean President Yoon Suk-Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will meet at Camp David on 18 August. The recent rapprochement between the two Asian liberal democracies paved the way for the meeting. The improved relationship between Japan and South Korea is also in the interest of the USA and the EU. Deeper cooperation has long been a goal of American foreign policy and an important pillar of Biden's Indo-Pacific strategy. However, Beijing views the rapprochement of the three democracies with scepticism and even speaks of a "mini-Nato".
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Western diplomats call for Russia’s isolation
Many Asian countries have condemned Putin's attack on Ukraine - but not all. At an event organised by FNF partner ISIS in Bangkok, Western ambassadors called on the global community to take tough action against Russia.
