and isolated, no longer subsidized by the ex-USSR.
The story of South Korea's economic development is a textbook case of how an "underdeveloped country" transforms itself into an economic powerhouse (Hanbook of Korea, 1987). South Korea is known as one of the "tiger" nations of East Asia (along with Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia). The country has ironically modeled itself largely after Japan, its previous colonizer, with respect to the latter's autarkic, neo-mercantilistic, and protectionist policies. By avid promotion of manufactured ex ports (mainly to the US) and simultaneously minimizing imports (except for raw materials that are scarce in the country), South Korea has aimed
...