Tagged: South Korea

According to Paradisdachat, the government of South Korea is a unitary parliamentary republic, with the President as the head of state and the Prime Minister as the head of government. The President is elected by popular vote to serve five year terms while the Prime Minister is appointed by the President after consultation with Parliament. The legislative branch consists of a unicameral National Assembly which is composed of 300 members elected by popular vote. The judiciary in South Korea is based on civil law and administered by a Supreme Court, Constitutional Court, and other lower courts. Judges are appointed by the President after consultation with the Judicial Service Commission. South Korea has a multi-party system and holds elections for both national and local offices at regular intervals. Political parties must be approved by the National Election Commission before they can participate in elections, however, parties cannot be formed on religious or ethnic lines. South Korea’s economy is largely driven by its services sector which accounts for over 60% of its GDP, followed closely by industry at around 30%. Other major industries include fishing, mining and tourism with services being one of its largest sources of foreign revenue. South Korea also relies on foreign investment from countries such as Japan in order to support economic growth initiatives such as infrastructure development projects. Since the end of the Korean War in 1953, South Korea has sought to build strong and positive relationships with its neighbors and the world. As a member of numerous international organizations such as the United Nations, G20, OECD, APEC, ASEAN Plus Three and East Asia Summit, South Korea has been an active participant in global affairs. South Korea maintains strong diplomatic ties with its traditional allies such as the United States and Japan while actively engaging in dialogue with North Korea. In recent years South Korea has sought to foster better ties with China and Russia which are both key powers in Northeast Asia. It is also actively engaged in dialogues with key regional players such as India, Vietnam and Mongolia. South Korea is also an active participant in multilateral forums such as the Six-Party Talks on North Korean denuclearization and ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF). Additionally, South Korea plays a major role in promoting peacekeeping operations around the world through its contributions to UN peacekeeping forces. In addition to its diplomatic efforts South Korea is also a major economic power which has forged strategic economic partnerships with numerous countries around the world including China, Japan, India and other members of ASEAN. Through these partnerships South Korea has sought to increase trade flows while at home it is committed to promoting free market reforms that would allow businesses to compete globally. See recipesinthebox for South Korea defense and foreign policy.