page_title: History of South Korea
section_title: Lee Myung-bak, 2008–2013
hierarchical_section_title: History of South Korea / Sixth Republic 1987–present / Lee Myung-bak, 2008–2013
caption_attribution_description: President George W. Bush and Laura Bush welcome South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and his wife, Kim Yoon-ok to the Presidential retreat at Camp David, Maryland.
context_page_description: The history of South Korea formally begins with its establishment on 15 August 1948.
  Korea was administratively partitioned in 1945, at the end of World War II. As Korea was under Japanese rule during World War II, Korea was officially a belligerent against the Allies by virtue of being Japanese territory. The unconditional surrender of Japan led to the division of Korea into two occupation zones, with the United States administering the southern half of the peninsula and the Soviet Union administering the area north of the 38th parallel. This division was meant to be temporary and was first intended to return a unified Korea back to its people after the United States, United Kingdom, Soviet Union, and Republic of China could arrange a single government for the peninsula.
  The two parties were unable to agree on the implementation of Joint Trusteeship over Korea. This led in 1948 to the establishment of two separate governments – the Communist-aligned Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the West-aligned First Republic of Korea – each claiming to be the legitimate government of all of Korea. On June 25, 1950 the Korean War broke out.
context_section_description: Roh's successor, Lee Myung-bak, was inaugurated in February 2008. Stating "creative pragmatism" as a guiding principle, Lee's administration set out to revitalize the flagging economy, re-energize diplomatic ties, stabilize social welfare, and meet the challenges of globalization. In April 2008, the ruling party secured a majority in the National Assembly elections. Also that month, summit talks with the United States addressed the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement and helped ease tensions between the two countries caused by the previous administrations. Lee agreed to lift the ban on US beef imports, which caused massive protests and demonstrations in the months that followed, as paranoia of potential mad cow disease gripped the country.
  Many issues plagued the government in the beginning of the administration: controversies regarding the appointment of high-ranking government officials, rampant political conflicts, accusations of oppression of media and strained diplomatic relationships with North Korea and Japan. The economy was affected by the global recession as the worst economic crisis since 1997 hit the country. The Lee administration tackled these issues by actively issuing statements, reshuffling the cabinet, and implementing administrative and industrial reforms.
  After regulatory and economic reforms, the economy bounced back, with the country's economy marking growth and apparently recovering from the global recession. The administration also pursued improved diplomatic relations by holding summit talks with the United States, China and Japan, and participating in the ASEAN-ROK Commemorative Summit to strengthen ties with other Asian countries. The 2010 G20 summit was held in Seoul, where issues regarding the global economic crisis were discussed.
caption: President George W. Bush and Laura Bush welcome South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and his wife, Kim Yoon-ok to the Presidential retreat at Camp David, Maryland in 2008.
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