Traditionally, the country of China has been the primary backer of the North Korean regime, no matter how out of control they got. They've been there since the 50s, in for the long haul, but the continued saber-rattling by the small communist DPRK appears to be wearing China thin. They've already had a few harsh words for North Korea and now it looks like they may be preparing for a larger move in the future, as China is strengthened ties with South Korea, a country that has been a rival for as long as North Korea has been an ally.
Considering that China and South Korea have never been the friendliest of neighbors, the two coming together would be an historic change. But the evidence seems to suggest this. The new South Korean president, Park Geun-hye has made a decent name for herself in the Chinese state-run media, despite having a family firmly opposed to communism. In addition, the media in China has been overall less critical of South Korea, which is a new tactic. The two countries have also been swapping more officials as of late, which means they’re talking more. This could indeed be a sign of things to come.
Another strange development, China looks to be siding a bit more with the United States on the North Korean matter as well. We may have a load of economic issues still, but the problem of the DPRK having nuclear weapons is forcing a friendlier interaction. In recent news, China is sending over their North Korea expert to help advise the U.S. government.
The reason for the change in China’s attitude seems obvious. Having a crazy neighbor with nuclear weapons is simply not safe. Thought the DPRK may not be nuclear capable as of yet, if they get to that point then China will be at risk. It makes political sense to stop them before they move forward any more. The constant cycle of providing them with aid and/or imposing sanctions on them is not working.
The question still remains of whether China is truly changing or just making gestures during the current North Korea dilemma. If this article is to be believed, there’s a much larger trail of political breadcrumbs to suggest that China is realizing it might be better without its unstable ally. The only problem is whether China will move fast enough to stop North Korea from imploding.
South Korea image courtesy of NASA via Wikicommons
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