In partnership with The Stimson Center, the University of Tennessee Knoxville, and The Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce, presents

“The Importance and the Impact of the  Strategic Partnership between the US and South Korea”

Join us for a panel discussion on the status, future, and importance of the upgraded alliance between the US and South Korea (ROK). The strength of the US-South Korean Alliance holds enduring value for the US and local communities against today’s evolving geopolitical challenges and in pursuing our collective goals of freedom, democracy, security, and economic prosperity. The conversation will delve into how the US-ROK Alliance reflects these shared aims and values through all facets of the relationship—military, economic, and diplomatic—and the benefit of this relationship for the American population. A range of discussion topics will encompass the future of extended deterrence on the Korean Peninsula, the Alliance’s role in the US Indo-Pacific strategy, multi-domain security cooperation, and the expansion of strategic trade.

 

Speakers:

Kevin L. Miller – President – KDVA Georgia

Kevin L. Miller is originally from Franklin, Pennsylvania and entered the United States Army in 1990. He completed Basic Training and Advance Individual Training with 2nd Bn 54th Infantry at Fort Benning, GA as an Infantryman.  His first duty station was with the 1st Bn 506th Infantry of the 2nd Infantry Division at Camp Greaves on the Korean DMZ.  Following 18 months with the 5th Infantry Division at Fort Polk, LA, he attended Airborne School at Fort Benning, GA.  His final duty station was with the 2nd Bn 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, NC.
On 23 March 1994, while serving with the 2nd Bn 504th PIR, Kevin was injured at a mass casualty event on Pope Air Force Base commonly known as the Disaster at Green Ramp. 24 Paratroopers lost their lives and over 60 were injured and required medical support at Fort Bragg, NC with many being further transferred to the burn ward at Fort Sam Houston, TX. Due to their permanent nature, Kevin’s injuries required him to separate from the United States Army in 1996 and he relocated to Atlanta, GA.  For the past 25 years, Kevin has served in middle and senior management roles within the defense industry and international sales markets.  He is currently a featured speaker and a consultant to multiple industries. As a proud member of the Korea Defense Veterans Association, Kevin was honored to be appointed as the President of the KDVA Georgia Chapter in October 2022.  He also selected to participate in the first Revisit Program for Korea Defense Veterans presented by the ROK MPVA and KDVA in November 2021. Kevin joined the Georgia Veterans Day Parade Association of Atlanta as a Director in 2001. He has served as President since 2010 and oversaw its transformation to the Georgia Veterans Day Association to better identify their expanded role. He is a Life Member of National Infantry Association, 82nd  Airborne Division Association, 504th  Parachute Infantry Regiment Association, 2nd  Infantry Division Association, and the DAV. Kevin is married to his wife of 23 years, Cecilia, and they have one daughter, Tina.

 

Scott Laska – Business Development Director – SL Tennessee

Scott is a dynamic and results-driven Business Development Director with over 22 years of experience in the automotive industry. As a key player at SL Tennessee  a leading tier-one automotive supplier based in Clinton, Tennessee with headquarters Daegu, South Korea, Scott is passionate about driving growth and forging strategic partnerships. leading to SL Tennessee growth from 30,000 sqft and 3 employees in 2000 to currently 1000 employees, 800,000 sqft and sales of $700 million dollars.

 

 

 

Jenny Town – Senior Fellow at the Stimson Center & Director of Stimson’s Korea Program

Jenny Town is a Senior Fellow at the Stimson Center and the Director of Stimson’s Korea Program and 38 North. Her areas of expertise include North Korea, US-DPRK relations, US-ROK alliance relations and extended deterrence, and Northeast Asia regional security. She was named one of Worth Magazine’s “Groundbreakers 2020: 50 Women Changing the World” and one of Fast Company’s Most Creative People in Business in 2019 for her role in co-founding and managing 38 North, which provides policy and technical analysis on North Korea.
Ms. Town is also an Associate Fellow at the Foreign Policy Institute at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), a Member of the National Committee on North Korea, and an Associate Member of the Council of Korean Americans. She serves on the Editorial Board for Inkstick, an online foreign policy journal for emerging scholars. She previously served as the Assistant Director of the US-Korea Institute at SAIS (2008-2018) and an expert reviewer for North and South Korea for Freedom House’s Freedom in the World Index (2010-2023), where she previously worked on the Human Rights in North Korea Project.
Ms. Town holds a BA in East Asian Studies and International Relations from Westmar University and a Master of International Affairs from Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs. She is a frequent commentator for a range of print, radio and television news, including Reuters, BBC, CNN, Financial Times, Deutche Welle, Voice of America, Japan Times, NHK, CGTN, BBC World Radio, and more. And has been featured on a number of podcasts including Asia Matters, The President’s Inbox, the Impossible State, Today Explained, The DSR Daily Brief, and more.

 

Moderator:

Iliana Ragnone – Research Associate for the Korea Program

Iliana Ragnone is a Research Associate for the Korea Program and Producer of 38 North at the Stimson Center. Prior to joining Stimson, she was a Program Assistant at the Foreign Service Institute, a part of the Department of State. She holds a B.A. in International and Area Studies and Chinese Language and Culture from Washington University in St. Louis.

 

 

 

 

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