Following the 2008 global financial crisis, uncertainty is escalating in the world economy amid disruptions in the financial and foreign exchange markets of emerging economies, mounting geopolitical instabilities triggered by the spread of international terrorism, and rising protectionism in advanced countries. While the term “BRICs” signaled the emergence of new markets in the early 2000s it has since become associated with pessimistic views regarding the future of emerging markets as growth falters in Brazil and Russia.
  However, emerging markets are vastly outpacing advanced economies in terms of their contribution to global economic growth. In response to protectionism and isolationism in the sluggish global economy, Korea should act as a mediator between the advanced and emerging countries, providing the momentum for sustainable development. Thus, comprehensive and in-depth research is needed for better understanding about emerging economies. Despite increasing demands for Area Studies, there is still a lack of systematic and insightful research on emerging markets.
  In this regard, Korea Institute for International Economic Policy (KIEP) launched the “Studies in Comprehensive Regional Strategies” project in 2009 with the aim of providing readily applicable international economic policy recommendations for policy makers, as well as the public, and to expand the promotion of Area Studies across the spheres of economics, politics, society, and culture.
  KIEP carries out a mixed bag of projects as it strengthens networks with regional experts, publishes research papers, jointly holds the international conference “KIEP and Associations of Area Studies,” and invites prominent scholars from around the world. In particular, we annually call for research papers from regional experts in Area Studies and publish these papers in a single volume.
  This year, for the first time, nine prominent scholars across the world have conducted their own research in the areas of Russia-Eurasia, South East Asia, India-South Asia, and Turkey-Eastern Europe. It is our hope that this informative body of research will prove useful to broadening readers’ understanding and knowledge of Area Studies. We also hope these research papers will contribute to the lively overseas expansion of Korean enterprises and the establishment of trade policies by the Korean government, and suggest ways to overcome challenges that trouble emerging economies.
  On behalf of KIEP, I would like to express our deepest gratitude and appreciation to the referees for their rigorous and helpful reviewing of the papers, as well as the authors for their endeavors to create considerable merit in the papers. The opinions expressed in the papers are the author’s own and do not represent the official views of KIEP.
  We sincerely look forward to your continued interest in and encouragement of “Studies in Comprehensive Regional Strategies” and KIEP.
 

Acknowledgements

1. Defining Contours of the India-Korea Strategic Partnership: Political and Economic Parameters
·Pankaj Jha (Indian Council of World Affairs/Director)

2. The Sweet Scent of Development: Korean Pop Culture in Latin America
·Ricardo Pagliuso Regatieri (Korea University/Research Professor)

3. Productive Integration in Mercosur and Its Implications for Korea’s Economic Cooperation with the Region 
·Uallace Moreira Lima (Federal University of Bahia/Adjunct Professor)

4. Russia’s Changing Economic and Military Relations with Europe and Asia from Cold War to the Ukraine Conflict: The Impacts of PowerBalances, Partnerships, and Economic Warfare
·Christopher Mark Davis (University of Oxford/Reader in Command and Transition Economies)

5. Russia and ASEAN in Eurasia: Value-Added for Russia-ROKCooperation
·Evgeny Kanaev (Primakov National Institute of World Economy and International Relations, Center for Asia-Pacific Studies/Leading Researcher)

6. Social and Political Transformation of the Russian Society in New Geopolitical Conditions
·Sokolov Alexander Vladimirovich (Demidov Yaroslavl State University/Associate Professor)

7. Economic Cooperation between the Republic of Korea and Republic of Uzbekistan: Actual Problems and their Solution Course
·Nigora Talipova (Tashkent State University of Economics/Associate Professor)
·Ganieva Gulnora (History Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Uzbekistan/Associate Professor)

8. Whither Turkey’s Integration to the European Union? Economic and Political Challenges in Turkey-EU Relations
·Mahmut Tek?e (Marmara University/Professor)

9. Turkey’s Perspective on Enhancing Connectivity in Eurasia: Searching for Compatibility between Turkey’s Middle Corridor and Korea’s EurasiaInitiative
·Selcuk Colakoglu (Yildirim Beyazit University/Professor)