Dr. Eric J. Ballbach
Asia Associate
Areas of Expertise
- Asia
- East Asia
- Indo-Pacific
- The Koreas
- Crisis management
- Defence and security policy / Armed forces
- Defence industry and procurement
- German defence and security policy
- Regional and interstate conflicts
- Weapons of mass destruction / proliferation
EU/NATO-Korea-Relations, Defence cooperation between Korea and Europe, North Korea's nuclear program, Sanctions against North Korea
Working GroupsShort Curriculum Vitae
Joined SWP in October 2017
Since 04/2015 Post-doctoral research fellow and lecturer, Institute of Korean Studies, Freie Universität Berlin
Since 10/2015 Director Research Unit II: North Korea and International Security, Institute of Korean Studies, Freie Universität Berlin
04/2009-03/2015 Research Fellow and Lecturer, Insitute of Korean Studies, Freie Universität Berlin
SWP Publications
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The K(orea)-Factor in the Zeitenwende
South Korea and the Rebuilding of Germany’s Defence Industrial Base
SWP Comment 2026/C 04, 28.01.2026, 8 Pagesdoi:10.18449/2026C04
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South Korea’s Ever-Closer Relations with NATO
Intersecting and Varying Motives of South Korea’s Moon Jae-in and Yoon Suk-yeol Administrations
SWP Comment 2025/C 04, 21.01.2025, 8 Pagesdoi:10.18449/2025C04
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Republic of Korea: Developing a Sustainable Foreign Policy and Implementing the SDGs
in: Country-level Politics around the SDGsContribution to a Research Paper 2023/RP 07, 10.07.2023, 75 Pages, pp. 46–50
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South Korea’s Evolving Indo-Pacific Strategy
Opportunities and challenges for cooperation with the EU
SWP Research Paper 2023/RP 02, 17.03.2023, 32 Pagesdoi:10.18449/2023RP02
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North Korea’s fait accompli
Implications of the changing status quo on the Korean Peninsula
SWP Comment 2022/C 63, 25.10.2022, 8 Pagesdoi:10.18449/2022C63
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In the Shadow of the “1992 System” – Relations between South Korea and Taiwan
in: Dealing with TaiwanContribution to a Research Paper 2022/RP 09, 09.09.2022, 91 Pages, pp. 50–55
External publications
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80 Years of Division: Reimagining Korea's unification strategy in the age of a New Cold War
Interview von Kim Mok-yeon, in: Within the Frame, Arirang News, 10.09.2025 -
The end of Critical Engagement: on the failures of the EU’s North Korea strategy
ARI 101/2019, Madrid: Elcano Royal Institute, 8 Pages -
The Ulaanbaatar Dialogue – a “Helsinki” for peace in Northeast Asia?
in: fes-asia.org, 26.06.2018 (online) -
Korea 2017: 'Rocketman' Kim vs. 'mentally deranged' Trump
Over 20 missile launches, one atomic test and a hefty verbal spat between North Korea and the United States – these events characterize the belligerent state of affairs on the Korean Peninsula in 2017.
in: dw.com, 26.12.2017 (online) -
North Korea’s Engagement in International Institutions
The Case of the ASEAN Regional Forum
in: International Journal of Korean Unification Studies, Vol. 26, No. 2, 2017, pp. 35−65 -
Authoritarian Continuity or Democratic Change? Assessing the Democratic Quality of South Korea’s North Korea Policymaking
in: Lee, Eun-Jeung, Mosler, Hannes B. and Kim Hak-jae (eds.): The Quality of Democracy in Korea: Three Decades after Democratization, Palgrave McMillan, London & New York, 16.11.2017, pp. 277-304