Filed Under: Regional Diplomacy, South East Asia, Working Papers

WPS 09-05: Myanmar-South Korean Economic Cooperation: Prospects and Strategies, by Chang-Yeon Kim (August 2009). Myanmar was the wealthiest country in Southeast Asia until the early 1960s but is now one of the poorest nations in the world. However, given its rich natural resource endowment as well as its key geostrategic position in Asia, Myanmar has the potential to rise to power once again. South Korean entrepreneurs have been investing in Myanmar’s resource extraction industries since 1990, and the South Korean government has been providing ODA to Myanmar since 1991. Although trade volume between Myanmar and South Korea is increasing, the full potential of Myanmar’s strategic value has yet to be acknowledged. In this paper, Mr. Kim analyzes the current status of Myanmar’s economy and its economic cooperation with South Korea, and discusses the potential benefits that could result from increased cooperation.