Korea

Korea A country whose history in the twentieth century was subject to the relations between its powerful neighbours, China, Russia/Soviet Union, and Japan. To avoid any confrontation, it chose to isolate itself during the nineteenth century, though towards the end of that period it came under increasing pressure from the imperialist powers of Britain, Japan, and the USA to open its borders to missionary and commercial activity. Following the Japanese victory in the Sino-Japanese War of 1894–5, it became subject to growing Japanese infuence. Japanese domination was confirmed by its victory in the Russo-Japanese War (1904–5). Korea became a Japanese protectorate in 1905, and a colony in 1910. Japanese exploitation and the absence of political or even human rights for Koreans triggered the growth of a variety of independence movements. Declarations of independence were made by students and other movements in 1918–19, while the March First Movement for national independence, which was brutally repressed, nevertheless resulted in the first large-scale mobilization of the masses.

As a result, in April 1919 a provisional government (in exile) was formed in Shanghai (China), under the leadership of Syngman Rhee. From 1934, Communist-inspired and Soviet-supported partisans under Kim Il Sung began a guerrilla campaign against Japanese occupation. In response, Japanese rule became more repressive, with a new policy to crush Korean culture and traditions: in the late 1930s, the use of the Korean language was forbidden, while clothing had to be Japanese. During World War II, almost a million Koreans were deported as virtual slave labour for Japanese firms, while others were forced to fight in the Japanese armed forces. Meanwhile, the Cairo Conference between the USA, Britain, and China in 1943 established Korean independence as an Allied goal consequent on the defeat of Japan in World War II. On 8 August 1945 the Soviet Union attacked Japan, with the Red Army quickly moving into northern Korea. This forced the USA to agree to joint occupation of the country in preparation for independence, with the territory north of the 38th Parallel under Soviet control, and the southern half under US administration. The USA, USSR, and UK signed the Moscow Agreement on 27 December 1945, which outlined a framework for the joint administration of the country and the creation of an independent state. However, this was never carried out.

Because of the developing Cold War, the Soviet and US administrations became mutually hostile, each trying to establish a system of government after its own image. While the Communists in the north under their leader, Kim Il Sung, carried out a popular land reform in 1946, in early 1948 the USA (under the auspices of the UN) sponsored elections for a national assembly. These elections were nationwide in theory, but only allowed to take place in the southern half of the country in practice. Thus, on 15 August 1948 the Republic of Korea (South Korea) was proclaimed, with Syngman Rhee as President. In turn, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) was created on 9 September 1948, under the leadership of Kim Il Sung. As each country claimed sovereignty over the whole of Korea, the relationship between the two countries deteriorated rapidly. Within a year, the USSR and the USA withdrew their forces from North and South Korea respectively, leaving behind a well-organized Communist army hardened by years of partisan warfare in the north, and a rather more incoherent army, founded as the Korean Constabulary, in the south.

Kim Il Sung finally received permission from Stalin to attack and invade South Korea in spring 1950. The Korean War devastated the country, through tremendous loss of life and other human cost, as well as economic devastation, including the destruction of 85 per cent of Korea's industrial capacity. Subsequently, the countries were separated by a demarcation line, which was extended by a 2 km (1.5 mile) demilitarized zone on either side. The border was hermetically sealed, with all lines of communication cut, thus making contact between separated relatives or friends impossible.

In subsequent decades, negotiations about possible reunification failed, while the relationship between the two halves was extremely tense, owing to the idiosyncratic government style of Kim Il Sung on the one hand and the fragile nature of the South Korean polity on the other. As the latter became more stable, tentative talks were held in the late 1980s in which the subject of reunification was discussed. However, reunification remained an impossibility during the lifetime of Kim Il Sung. His death in 1994, as well as the collapse of the Soviet Union, reopened questions about the viability of the North Korean regime. Ironically, from 1995 this increased rather than reduced tensions, as the North Korean government became even more bellicose in an effort to hide its own weaknesses. Manifestations of North Korea's aggressiveness did not diminish. Kim Dae Jong's commitment to reconciliation was frequently frustrated, not least by Kim Jong Il's decision, in late 2002, to resume North Korea's nuclear energy programme.