China not only established good diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union and many socialist countries in Eastern Europe in the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China, but also gradually improved its diplomacy with the Western camp headed by the United States after the 70s of the last century, and successfully restored its legitimate seat in the United Nations.
Among them, the diplomatic situation on the Korean Peninsula has also been attracting attention. After all, the Korean Peninsula is close to Northeast China, North China, and East China, and has been neighbors since ancient times. China's Korean Peninsula diplomacy began in the '50s, like other socialist countries, by maintaining a united front with North Korea, and at one point referring only to Korea as South Korea.
After the 80s of the last century, with the great improvement of relations between China and Western countries, coupled with the promotion of the Seoul Olympics, and the increasingly close non-governmental business exchanges between China and South Korea, the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and South Korea has become an important event to be put on the agenda.
In order to establish diplomatic relations between China and South Korea, China must not only negotiate with Korea, but also carry out public relations activities with North Korea.
1. The establishment of diplomatic relations between China and South Korea is in full swing
After the Korean War, China did not establish diplomatic relations with Korea due to the Cold War environment. The few diplomatic contacts between China and South Korea have also been in response to some unexpected events.
However, with China's reform and opening up in the late 70s, coupled with Korea's rapid economic development during this period, although China and South Korea did not establish diplomatic relations, they had substantial foreign trade activities, and in 1991 alone, the foreign trade volume of China and South Korea reached 5 billion US dollars, and if China and South Korea trade were fully liberalized, this value would increase many times.
As for relations with Korea, Deng Xiaoping set two guidelines as early as 1985: First, they could do business with each other, and second, they hoped that Korea would sever diplomatic relations with the Taiwan authorities, and Deng Xiaoping believed that the time was ripe for the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and South Korea.
Coincidentally, after Korea President Roh Tae-woo came to power in 1988, he changed his previous foreign policy of Korea not having contacts with socialist countries, and instead established diplomatic relations with socialist countries, including the Soviet Union, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Poland, in an attempt to expand the diplomatic circle of Korea. As Korea's neighbor and influential regional power, Roh Tae-woo naturally will not fall behind China.
In this context, both countries have a strong desire to establish formal relations with each other.
As a result, China sent then-Foreign Minister Qian Qichen to Seoul in November 1991 to attend the APEC meeting, where he made contact with Korea, especially with Roh Tae-woo. Without any reservations, Roh Tae-woo told Qian Qichen that it was regrettable that Korea had been separated from China for decades by hearing the voice of Shandong chickens and dogs, and that its intention to establish diplomatic relations as soon as possible was not concealed.
Although Qian Qichen did not give a direct reply, after he returned to China, China and the ROK immediately went there, and in April of the following year, on the occasion of the meeting of the Economic and Social Council for Asia and the Pacific in Beijing, they launched secret talks.
At that time, the Korea delegation in contact with China was dominated by Lee Sang-ok, Kwon Byung-hyun and others, and the Korea side, like China, was also secretly operating, mainly to prevent the Taiwan authorities from discovering traces of Sino-South Korean contact.
In fact, the two sides did not have much difference on many key issues, and Korea readily agreed to the request to sever diplomatic relations with the Taiwan authorities and withdraw the embassy; one thing they were very concerned about was that they hoped that things could be done quickly, because Roh Tae-yu's presidential term was less than one year left, and Roh Tae-yu very much wanted to regard the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and South Korea as an outstanding achievement during his term of office.
2. PR North Korea
But for China to establish diplomatic relations with Korea, there are other factors that must be considered.
In particular, the attitude of the DPRK is a factor that must be taken into account when China and South Korea establish diplomatic relations.
This is because, after all, the DPRK is a traditional friend of China, and the friendship between the two countries is very deep. Especially after the 80s of the last century, China and the DPRK also reached a custom of informing each other on many matters related to the peninsula.
Therefore, when China and Korea discuss the establishment of diplomatic relations, the DPRK naturally knows about it.
In addition, it should be noted here that after the 50s, the DPRK has long pursued a policy that only the DPRK is the sole legitimate regime on the peninsula, and for a time did not accept the establishment of diplomatic relations between other countries and the DPRK and the ROK at the same time, so they could only choose one of the two. Some countries will soon break off diplomatic relations with North Korea after Korea establishes diplomatic relations.
For example, in 1988, after Korea and the Soviet Union reported that there was a possibility of establishing diplomatic relations during the Seoul Olympics, North Korea recalled diplomatic personnel in the Soviet Union in a fit of rage, expelled Soviet personnel in North Korea, and severed diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union.
After the Soviet Union and Korea formally established diplomatic relations in 1990, North Korea criticized the event in the media, arguing that the Soviet Union did so because of the difficulties and chaos of reform. North Korea also accused the Soviet Union of abandoning the idea of a socialist international. Moreover, the Soviet Union's move was of the nature of "opposing the reunification of the Korean Peninsula" and brought great harm to the cause of reunification of the Korean Peninsula.
You must know that the Soviet Union is the most important country with which the DPRK has diplomatic relations, and the economic and mutual association system established by the Soviet Union is very important to the economy and people's livelihood of the DPRK. Even the private contacts between the Soviet Union and Korea and the establishment of diplomatic relations will arouse such strong resistance in North Korea, and diplomatic contacts between China and South Korea, if they cannot successfully publicize North Korea, will presumably also negatively affect Sino-North Korean relations.
Therefore, public relations with the DPRK is a very difficult and very important matter. The Chinese side carefully selected the liaison personnel to enter the DPRK, and finally chose Foreign Minister Qian Qichen to go to Pyongyang.
Qian Qichen is an experienced diplomat who has worked for many years at the Chinese Embassy in the Soviet Union, as well as as managing the Diplomatic Information Department.
On July 15, 1992, just before the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and South Korea, Qian Qichen took Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Tingyan, Xu Dunxin and others to arrive at a Kim Il Sung holiday villa on the shore of Yanfeng Lake in North Korea by military plane.
Before meeting Kim Il-sung, Qian Qichen had been worried about whether there would be a subtle reaction from the North Korean side. However, in any case, he followed his mission and first conveyed to Kim Il Sung the message of the Chinese leader at that time, as well as his respect and best wishes for Kim Il Sung.
Moreover, Qian Qichen patiently explained to Kim Il Sung that exchanges between China and Korea are imperative and difficult to avoid, and hopes that North Korea can understand China. Of course, Qian Qichen also said that the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the ROK will not affect the relations between China and the DPRK, that China will continue to support the peaceful reunification of the Korean Peninsula, and that his colleagues also cherish the friendship between China and the DPRK. Not only that, China is also willing to promote inter-Korean relations in the future, and the DPRK-US relations will be relaxed.
After Qian Qichen expressed China's position, the scene fell silent at first, and everyone was waiting for the 80-year-old Kim Il Sung to speak.
What is surprising is that after Kim Il Sung opened his mouth, he did not put forward his opinion, but generously said that since China has already decided, then you should do so, and the DPRK will solve the difficulties encountered in the construction of the DPRK itself. After speaking, Kim Il Sung looked at the gifts sent by the Chinese side for a while, and hoped that Qian Qichen would convey his blessings to the Chinese leadership after returning to China, and then sent Qian Qichen and his party away.
According to the recollection of Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Tingyan, who was present at the time, Kim Il Sung's meeting with the Chinese delegation was somewhat briefer than any previous one. From the perspective of later generations as God, this may be because Kim Il Sung is getting older on the one hand, and on the other hand, he may not want to hear the news in his heart.
Of course, in any case, Kim Il Sung has no intention of obstructing it, and there is no obstacle to the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and South Korea.
Finally, in August 1992, China and South Korea formally established diplomatic relations and issued a joint communiqué, and Korea kept its promise and severed relations with the Taiwan authorities. Korea President Roh Tae-woo also led a delegation to visit China in September of the same year, and China and South Korea achieved a win-win breakthrough in their diplomatic undertakings.
There were different opinions on why North Korea so readily recognized the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and South Korea. But from the perspective of latecomers, it is normal for North Korea to do this.
First of all, in principle, China and Korea are both sovereign countries, and the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries is irreversible, and whether to establish diplomatic relations can be completely decided by the two countries.
In the process, North Korea can only make suggestions, and cannot dominate the diplomatic activities of China and South Korea.
Second, before the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and South Korea, there were precedents for other countries to have diplomatic relations with Korea and North Korea at the same time, and North Korea's "either-or-one diplomacy" has actually loosened.
For example, after Hungary, Poland, and Yugoslavia established diplomatic relations with Korea in 1989, North Korea did not sever diplomatic relations with these three countries, but continued to maintain the status quo.
Moreover, the DPRK leadership was well aware at this time that the trend of other countries establishing diplomatic relations with Korea was really difficult to reverse, and the "either-or" policy of the DPRK and the ROK could no longer be maintained. North Korea has already had a number of private contacts with Korea in talks to join the United Nations.
Moreover, considering that Korea President Roh Tae-woo was about to leave office, Kim Yong-sam and Kim Dae-jung had a high probability of coming to power in favor of détente with North Korea, North Korea also needed to show goodwill to Korea and ease relations between the North and the South.
Of course, these changes in relations and private contacts between the two Koreas were not fully known to China at that time, and they were all learned from the perspective of God after the fact.
It is worth mentioning that the model of establishing diplomatic relations between China and South Korea provided a reference for Korea to carry out diplomatic relations with other socialist countries in the future.
For example, four months after the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and South Korea, another socialist country, Viet Nam, soon established diplomatic relations with Korea in December, while maintaining normal inter-Korean relations. Since then, Laos, Mongolia and other countries have also established diplomatic relations with Korea, and the diplomatic situation in Asia has also undergone some small changes.
Today, the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the ROK has yielded fruitful results, and China and the ROK have many common interests in jointly safeguarding the Six-Party Talks and maintaining the peace and order in Northeast Asia.
In the field of economy and trade, China is Korea's most important foreign trade partner, and Korea is also China's third largest trading country, and the bilateral trade volume between China and South Korea will reach more than 300 billion US dollars in 2023 alone, and the future is promising. Today's achievements are inseparable from the diplomatic interaction between the two countries more than 30 years ago, and their friendship is worthy of the common protection of people today.
Resources:
1,2022.8.24-China News Weekly-The 30th Anniversary of the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between China and South Korea: The Inside Story of the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations Behind a Secret Negotiation and a Special Briefing
2,2024.6.23-China Business News Network-China and South Korea increase RMB trade settlement