UAlbany Professor Explores South Korea’s Military Modernization through Fulbright Award

Two military personnel wearing uniforms are seated next to two civilians in an office. They smile and pose for a photo.
UAlbany Associate Professor of Korean Studies Peter Kwon (right) meets with Professor Park Young-June and South Korean military officers at Korea National Defense University as part of his Fulbright research. (Photos provided)

By Bethany Bump

ALBANY, N.Y. (Feb. 18, 2025) — Peter Banseok Kwon, associate professor of Korean Studies in the Department of East Asian Studies at UAlbany, is in South Korea researching the history of the nation’s defense industry through a Fulbright U.S. Scholar Award for the 2024-25 academic year.

Kwon has been traveling to the nation for his field research for many years, each time in search of newly declassified government documents and individuals that can shed light on the country’s secretive military modernization programs that took place during the second half of the 20th century.

The founding of South Korea’s defense industry was spearheaded by the late president Park Chung Hee (1963-1979) in an effort to shore up the nation’s defenses against North Korea after the Nixon Doctrine of 1969 threatened to withdraw U.S. troops from the region. The Park administration’s full mobilization of business, science, labor and citizenry for the cause led to localized arms development and simultaneous industrial and economic growth, setting the stage for South Korea to become a global economic powerhouse.

"The Fulbright award has been invaluable, providing me the opportunities to access rare primary sources at various national archives as well as the chance to engage directly with experts in the defense industry field in South Korea," Kwon said. "I believe this research will contribute significantly to our understanding of the diverse and long-term role and agency of South Korea's military in the country's economic miracle."

A man in a suit presents in front of a screen that shows the jacket for a book titled, "Cornerstone of the Nation"
Peter Kwon delivers a talk about his book, Cornerstone of the Nation: The Defense Industry and the Building of Modern Korea under Park Chung Hee, at the Kyujanggak Institute for Korean Studies, Seoul National University.

Kwon’s prior research into the subject led to the publication of his first book, Cornerstone of the Nation: The Defense Industry and the Building of Modern Korea under Park Chung Hee. Published last year by Harvard University Asia Center, it examined the origins of South Korea’s defense industry in the late 1960s and 1970s and its impact on the nation’s socioeconomic and military transformation.

The research he’s currently working on investigates the Yulgok Operation (1974-1992), a clandestine weapons-acquisition project that played a central role in South Korea's military modernization until its termination in 1993. This research will form the basis of his second book, Column of the Nation: The Yulgok Operation and South Korea's Global Rise. Drawing from recently declassified documents, the new volume will examine the operation's broader implications beyond military development, including its impact on the country’s military and technological sovereignty, export-oriented industrial infrastructure, security, inter-Korean relations, and the U.S.-ROK alliance.

Kwon is the latest in a long line of UAlbany faculty to receive Fulbright awards. In 2023, the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs recognized UAlbany as one of the colleges and universities with the highest number of faculty and administrators selected for the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program in the doctoral institution category.

A man behind a podium gestures at a large screen showing a map and the title, DX Korea 2024.
Peter Kwon presents at DX Korea 2024.

As part of the program, Kwon is affiliated with Korea National Defense University as a visiting professor and Yonsei University's Graduate School of International Studies as a visiting scholar from July 2024 to May 2025. Since arriving there last July, he has presented at numerous venues, including DX Korea 2024, National History Conference, Seoul National University, Korea National Defense University, Seoul University of Science and Technology, Yonsei University, and the Academy of Korean Studies. He has also been meeting with renowned military experts and scholars in national security affairs.

"I believe these connections will be invaluable for UAlbany's future research initiatives related to Korea," Kwon noted.

He plans to apply his newly gained knowledge and cutting-edge research resources to enrich the East Asian Studies program at UAlbany, particularly in courses on Korean history, society, politics, and North Korea.

"I hope that my experience as a Fulbright U.S. Scholar will facilitate more international collaborations between UAlbany and South Korean universities, fostering deeper intellectual exchanges and cooperation to benefit our scholars and students and ultimately contribute to greater mutual understanding and cooperation between the U.S. and South Korea," he said.