Dr. Jihoon Yu is a Research Fellow at the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses (KIDA) and previously served as KIDA’s Director of External Cooperation. He served in the Republic of Korea Navy for 27 years as a submarine officer and strategic planning officer. During his naval career, he played key roles in major national defense programs, including South Korea’s light aircraft carrier (CVX) project and the Jangbogo-III (KSS-III) submarine program. He is also the principal author of Navy Vision 2045, the ROK Navy’s long-term modernization blueprint guiding its development toward its centennial in 2045. In addition, he served as a Professor of Military Strategy at the Republic of Korea Naval Academy.
Dr. Yu’s areas of expertise include the ROK–U.S. alliance, ROK–Europe security cooperation, inter-Korean relations, maritime security, naval strategy, hybrid threats, and strategic weapons systems. His analyses and commentaries have appeared in major international outlets such as The Diplomat, The National Interest, RealClearDefense, USNI Proceedings, War on the Rocks, The Strategist, NK News, and Korea Pro. He also completed the U.S. Navy’s Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) course.
For his contributions to strengthening the ROK–U.S. alliance, he received an Achievement Award from the U.S. Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies (APCSS). Dr. Yu holds a B.A. in International Relations from the Republic of Korea Naval Academy, an M.A. in National Security Affairs from the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School, an M.A. in International Relations from the Republic of Korea National Defense University, and a Ph.D. in Political Science from Syracuse University.
