Nearly two years since it first erupted in Tunisia, the popular uprisings of the "Arab Spring" continue to shake the foundations of decades of authoritarian rule across the Middle East and North Africa. While their precise nature or the political, economic, and strategic implications for the region and the rest of the world have yet to be assessed, there is no doubt that they will be profound. With deep economic ties to the Middle East, Korea feels the impact of the political changes currently taking place in the region acutely, and the two regions' futures remain deeply intertwined. This timely project on the Arab Spring was initiated to provide The Asan Institute's own assessment of the changes currently taking place in the region and their significant implications for South Korea. The Asan Institute for Policy Studies is an independent think tank located in Seoul, South Korea, that provides innovative policy solutions and spearheads public discourse on many of the core issues that Korea, East Asia, and the global community face. The goal of the institute is not only to offer policy solutions but also to train experts in public diplomacy and related fields in order to strengthen Korea's capacity to better tackle some of the most pressing problems affecting the country, the region and the world today.

Nearly two years since it first erupted in Tunisia, the popular uprisings of the 'Arab Spring' continue to shake the foundations of decades of authoritarian rule across the Middle East and North Africa. While their precise nature or the political, economic, and strategic implications for the region and the rest of the world have yet to be assessed, there is no doubt that they will be profound. With deep economic ties to the Middle East, Korea feels the impact of the political changes currently taking place in the region acutely, and the two regions' futures remain deeply intertwined. This project on the Arab Spring provides The Asan Institute's own assessment of the changes currently taking place in the region and their significant implications for South Korea.