KOR · East Asia
South Korea
World's thirteenth-largest economy, semiconductor giant (Samsung, SK Hynix). Emerging from institutional crisis after the brief December 2024 martial law episode.
Data refreshed on 2026.10.08 · source: Wikidata
Points to watch 2026.10.09
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Watch
Recent institutional rupture: Tentative loi martiale 3 décembre 2024 (Yoon, échec en 6h).
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Watch
New head of government since 2026.07.01: Han Seong-sook, replacing Lee Jae-myung. Wikidata
- Context
Drawn automatically from the file's layers, sources shown; no hand-written text. JSON
The Institute's composite reading
Vigilance
2.8 /10 risk
- Security 0.0
- Legitimacy 7.4
- Economy 6.5
- Diplomacy 6.8
- Influence 5.2
Security: 0 stable → 10 unstable · others: 0 weak → 10 strong. Computed from V-Dem, FH, CPI, RSF, World Bank, SIPRI, sanctions.
Listings linked to the country by nationality or address: United States 5 (list of 2026.10.02), United Kingdom 2 (list of 2026.10.07).
- Capital
- Seoul
- Population
- 51,000,000 inh.
- Area
- 100,210 km²
- Currency
- KRW
- Regime
- Presidential republic
Executive in office
Head of State
Lee Jae-myung
Head of Government
Han Seong-sook
Government in office 1 members
Acting Prime Minister of South Korea
Lee Ju-ho
Parliament
Gukhoe
300 seats
Chair Cho Jeong-sik
Inception 1948
Economic indicators World Bank · 2025
GDP
1.87 T$
GDP / capita
36,227 $
Growth
1.0 %
Inflation
2.1 %
Unemployment
2.7 %
Debt / GDP
47.8 %
Defense / GDP
2.6 %
Life expectancy
83.6 yrs
Military bases Institute · Wikipedia
active rotational or scaled down uncertain closed or handed over foreign base on national soil
Register kept by the Institute, updated 2026.10.08; coordinates and links read from Wikipedia.
Foreign bases on national soil 3
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1
-
2
Kunsan Air Base
United States of America · Gunsan
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3
Osan Air Base
United States of America · Pyeongtaek
Military capabilities Wikipedia · IISS Military Balance résumés
Active
555 000
Reserve
3,100 000
Land
- 261 K2 Black Panther Char moderne
- 1,500 K1A1/A2 Char
- 478 K21 IFV VCI
- 1,100 K9 Thunder 155 mm Artillerie auto.
- — Hyunmoo (séries) Missile balistique conventionnel
Air
- 59 F-15K Slam Eagle Chasseur
- 168 KF-16 Fighting Falcon Chasseur
- 40 F-35A Lightning II Chasseur 5e gén.
- 60 FA-50 Fighting Eagle Chasseur léger
- 6 KF-21 Boramae Chasseur 4.5 (programme indigène)
Naval
- 2 Dokdo + Marado Porte-hélicoptères amphibie
- 3 Sous-marins classe Dosan Ahn Changho (KSS-III) Sous-marin SLBM-capable
- 16 Sous-marins classe Son Won-il / Chang Bogo Sous-marin AIP
- 3 Destroyer classe Sejong le Grand (Aegis) Destroyer Aegis
Armed forces 12 units listed · Wikidata
Show the 12 units · raw Wikidata list, which does not always flag a disbanded unit
Commandement
Combined Forces Command
Commandement
Former Command Center of the 1st Army Training Camp
Commandement
Jeju Gama Oreum Japanese Imperial Cave Fortification
Commandement
Naval Education and Training Command
Commandement
Naval Logistics Command
Commandement
ROKAF Air Combat Command
Commandement
Republic of Korea Air Force Operations Command
Commandement
Republic of Korea Fleet Command
Commandement
Republic of Korea Marine Corps
Commandement
Tongjeyeong
Division
ROK-US Combined Division
Bataillon
2nd Air Assault Battalion
Nuclear posture
Capacité latente potentielle
Débat public sur acquisition · 70% opinion favorable 2024
Strategic chokepoints 1 control point(s)
- borde Détroit de Tsushima Avec Japon
Governance indices V-Dem 2025 · Freedom House 2026 · CPI 2025 · RSF 2026
Democracy (V-Dem)
0.82/1
Freedoms (Freedom House)
83/100
Corruption (CPI)
63/100
Press freedom (RSF)
69/100
Military posture SIPRI · 2025
Global spending rank
#11
Annual budget
48.9 Md$
Defense effort
2.6 %PIB
Strategic minerals USGS · production / réserves mondiales
- #4 Tungstène raffiné 5 % 2024
Trade dependencies OEC · UN Comtrade · 2023
Exports
632 Md$
Imports
643 Md$
Balance
-11 Md$
Top exports
- 15.6% Circuits intégrés (Samsung, SK) 99 Md$
- 11.4% Voitures + pièces 72 Md$
- 6.8% Pétrole raffiné 43 Md$
- 3.5% Navires (Hyundai HI, Samsung HI) 22 Md$
Top imports
- 12.5% Pétrole brut 80 Md$
- 5.5% Gaz naturel (LNG) 35 Md$
- 3.5% Charbon 22 Md$
Export partners
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Chine
19.7%
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États-Unis
18.3%
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Vietnam
8.5%
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Japon
4.6%
Import partners
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Chine
22.2%
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États-Unis
11.0%
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Japon
7.4%
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Australie
5.4%
Diplomatic alignment UNGA 2020-2024 · Bailey-Strezhnev-Voeten
Vote concordance with each power at UN General Assembly.
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USA
81%
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GBR
84%
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FRA
86%
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DEU
87%
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RUS
22%
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CHN
31%
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ISR
41%
Abstention: 14%
Key treaties UN Treaty Collection · IAEA · ICRC · OPCW
-
✓
NPT
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✓
CTBT
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✗
TPNW
-
✓
Rome Statute
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✓
Genocide
-
✓
Geneva
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✗
Ottawa Mine Ban
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✗
Oslo Cluster Munitions
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✓
Arms Trade Treaty
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✓
Paris Agreement
Bilateral visits, last 24 months Wikipedia · communiqués officiels
Outgoing visits
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2025-08-25
États-Unis · Bilatéral
Lee-Trump · alliance + DPRK
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2025-09-23
États-Unis · AGNU
Incoming visits
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2025-10-31
Xi · 1ère visite KOR depuis 11 ans (APEC)
Political calendar Institute · Wikipedia · 2026-10-08
Upcoming
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2028-04
Législatives
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2030-03
Présidentielle
Mandat unique de 5 ans
Last election
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2025-06-03
Lee Jae-myung (Parti démocrate) · turnout 79.4%
Suite à destitution Yoon Suk-yeol après loi martiale décembre 2024
Last institutional rupture Tentative loi martiale 3 décembre 2024 (Yoon, échec en 6h)
Society · human UNDP HDI 2023 · World Bank · WID · UNHCR 2025
HDI
0.937/1
Gini
32.9
Refugees hosted
4,407
Refugees originating
117
Defense industry SIPRI Top 100 · sites officiels
Arms export rank
#9
2% du marché mondial
Doctrine
Defense Reform 2.0 — autonomie + dissuasion conventionnelle face à DPRK
Prime contractors
- Hanwha Aerospace/Ocean
- Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI)
- LIG Nex1
- Hyundai Rotem
Key platforms
- K2 Black Panther
- K9 Thunder
- FA-50/KF-21
- Daegu/KSS-III
National anthem
Aegukga
Alliances and organisations Institut · Wikidata
- G20
- Alliance États-Unis–Corée
- UN
- OECD
- WTO
- APEC
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Global attention Wikipedia · 90 days
The country's Wikipedia article is usually read 6,378 times a day (French and English). On 2026.10.07: 6,047, or ×1.0.
French + English French usual level 2026.07.10 · 2026.10.07 Wikimedia statistics (CC0), human users
Sources and freshness
- Executive, government, parliament, anthem · Wikidata (CC0) · 2026-10-08
- Economy · World Bank (CC BY 4.0) · 2025
- Indices and figures · V-Dem 2026 (OWID) · Freedom House 2026 (OWID) · Transparency International CPI 2025 · RSF 2026 · PNUD IDH 2025 (OWID) · Banque mondiale Gini 2021 · UNHCR 2025 · SIPRI 2026 (OWID) · read on 2026-10-08
- Memberships · Wikidata (CC0) · 2026-10-08
- Political calendar · Institute and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0) · 2026-10-08
- Sanctions · US Treasury (OFAC), SDN and non-SDN lists · list of 2026-10-02 · read on 2026-10-08
- Sanctions · United Kingdom, UK Sanctions List (FCDO) · list of 2026-10-07 · read on 2026-10-08
- Sanctions · European Union, consolidated financial sanctions list · list of 2026-09-22 · read on 2026-10-08
- Institute dossier (sanctions, treaties, visits, capabilities) · as of 2026-05-01