E. J. R. Cho is a Research Fellow at the Institute for National Security Strategy (INSS) in Seoul and a lecturer in Seoul National University. Her primary objective is to critically engage with the mainstream discourse of International Relations by adopting cutting-edge concepts in comparative perspectives. Some notable works include ‘Non-Proliferation Efforts at Risk: A Study of North Korea’s Network for Nuclear and Missile Cooperation’(2014), ‘Nation Branding for Survival in North Korea: The Arirang Festival and Nuclear Weapons Tests’ (2017), ‘South Korean views on Japan’s Constitutional Reform under the Abe government’ (co-authored with Ki-young Shin, 2018), and ‘Epistemological Turn in North Korean Studies: Critical Analysis of North Korean Threat Theory’ (2018). 

Abstract: Nuclear discourse today is dominated by strategic deterrence models and technological risk assessments, often eclipsing the human dimension of Hibakusha—survivors of radiation exposure worldwide. This study applies a critical security framework to show how game-theoretic deterrence, grassroots anti-nuclear activism, and broader European debates—over a “nuclear umbrella” and other security proposals—all too often marginalize survivor voices and socio-historical contexts. It argues that the concept of Global Hibakusha must not be confined to Hiroshima or Nagasaki but understood as an ongoing reality—from Bikini Atoll to Chernobyl, Three Mile Island, Fukushima, and Yongbyon. Through close readings of policy texts, activist literature, and survivor testimonies, this research uncovers “unfinished sufferings” across gender, nationality, class, and faith that traditional narratives overlook. In doing so, it underscores the importance of grounding nuclear debates in lived human experiences rather than abstract state or technical concerns.