Taeho Bark is Minister for Trade of the Republic of Korea, and a candidate for the post of Director-General of the World Trade Organization. He was chairman of the Korea Trade Commission, and dean of the Graduate School of International Studies of Seoul National University.
By forcing much of the world to go online, the COVID-19 crisis has rapidly broadened the global technology debate beyond questions of surveillance and privacy. The digital policies that governments adopt today will increasingly shape how we work, learn, and entertain ourselves – and how we manage future crises.
Many Western economists presume that governments are not very good at identifying industries that merit support, and that domestic consumers and taxpayers incur the bulk of the costs. By the same logic, if Chinese policymakers effectively targeted activities where social benefits exceed private benefits, then it is not clear why foreigners should complain.
