Aftermath of Yoon Seok-yeol Martial Law... South Korea's 'National Risk Assessment' Drops 9 Ranks

South Korea Drops from 25th to 34th in R&I National Risk Survey
Fourth Largest Decline Among 100 Countries

Yonhap News

South Korea dropped nine places in a national risk survey conducted across 100 countries worldwide. The score declined compared to the previous year due to increased political instability following President Yoon Suk-yeol's declaration of martial law. The decline was the fourth largest among all surveyed countries.

According to Japan's Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) on the 4th, South Korea ranked 34th in the national risk survey conducted by Japanese credit rating agency R&I (Rating & Investment Information) in January this year. This is nine places lower than the previous survey (25th). R&I, considered one of Japan's two major credit rating agencies alongside JCR, conducts surveys targeting major domestic banks and think tanks in 100 countries worldwide to calculate scores.

South Korea's score in this evaluation was 7.3 points, down 0.3 points from last year. This was the fourth largest decline among the surveyed countries. R&I pointed out that President Yoon Suk-yeol's December declaration of martial law and the resulting political instability were the main factors behind the credit rating downgrade.

The decline in credibility due to the martial law incident is observed in various places. Recently, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), the economic analysis arm of the British weekly magazine The Economist, released the 'Democracy Index 2024' on the 27th of last month (local time), ranking South Korea 32nd. In the 2023 evaluation, South Korea rose two places compared to the previous year, but last year it fell by ten places.

South Korea scored 7.75 out of 10 in the overall evaluation, down from 8.09 points (22nd place) in 2023. The 7.75 score is the lowest South Korea has received since EIU began calculating the index in 2006. Consequently, South Korea moved from the 'full democracy' group, where it had been included for four consecutive years since 2020, to the 'flawed democracy' group. The EIU report stated, "The aftermath of President Yoon Suk-yeol's attempt to declare martial law heightened polarization and tension in the parliament and among the public, and this is likely to continue into 2025," adding, "Public dissatisfaction with democracy in South Korea may increase."

Meanwhile, in this R&I national risk survey, Asian countries besides South Korea also showed notable declines. Bangladesh experienced the largest drop in score among surveyed countries, falling by 1.0 point since the collapse of the Hasina administration in August 2012. Consequently, its ranking plummeted from 60th to 83rd. The Hasina administration had maintained the most friendly relations with India since Bangladesh's independence in 1971.

Credit ratings for China and India also fell by 0.1 points each. Nikkei noted that China's economic recovery is slowing due to the prolonged slump in the real estate market, while India's Modi administration, entering its third term, is facing difficulties coordinating policies within the coalition government.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.