Introduction

Relations between Europe and Korea have developed at a dramatic pace since 24 July 1963, when the Republic of Korea established official diplomatic relations with the European Community. The academic literature has focused mainly on the economic dimension of EU–Korea relations. But while EU–Korea cooperation in political and security-related fields of policy has been fostered in recent years, the literature has somehow failed to keep pace with these developments. The meeting also served to emphasize South Korea and the EU’s commitment to international cooperation in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. The agreements have also served South Korea to join EU counter-piracy missions and crisis management operations; potentially, the same could happen with peacekeeping and peacebuilding, as well as space policy and technology. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.