A Subdued Anniversary

By+Ling+Shengli

Bilateral relations between China and the Republic of Korea （ROK） have made tremendous progress since the two nations first established official diplomatic ties in 1992. Within 16 years， the relations leapfrogged from being simply cooperative， to comprehensively cooperative， and then a strategic and cooperative partnership. In the past 25 years， China and the ROK have made great achievements in maintaining high-level visits， upgrading economic and trade cooperation， and deepening people-to-people exchanges.

But due to polemics between the United States and the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea （DPRK）， China-ROK relations underwent various twists and turns. The deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense （THAAD） system， for example， severely damaged the link between China and South Korea. Looking to the future， it remains to be seen whether China and the ROK could achieve a mature and rational diplomatic relation despite a complex international environment.

25 years of relations

China and the ROK are geographically close and culturally alike. The two countries enjoyed frequent exchanges throughout history but have become estranged in modern times due to various reasons. Shortly after the end of the Cold War， China and the ROK ended mutual hostilities， established diplomatic relations， and ushered in a new stage of their bilateral cooperation. The past 25 years have proved that ChinaROK relations have won support from both governments and their citizens. Moreover， developing such exchanges conforms to the common interests of both sides. Bilateral cooperation has scored remarkable achievements in the areas of politics， economy， and people-to-people exchanges.

Politically， there has been an increasing number of high-level visits and a continuous escalation of partnerships. In 1998， China and the ROK established a cooperative partnership to face the 21st century. In 2003， it was upgraded to a comprehensive cooperative partnership. And in 2008， both countries agreed to upgrade their ties into a strategic and cooperative partnership. In July 2014， Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Seoul. China and the ROK co-announced that the two countries would pursue the “four partnerships”， namely： partnership for common development； partnership for regional peace； partnership for Asias renewal； and partnership for world prosperity. The beefi ng up of bilateral relations in a relatively short time can be attributed to joint efforts from the two governments and the results of expanding mutual benefits and deepening mutual trust.endprint

Accelerating bilateral economic cooperation between the two sides serves as the ballast to safeguard bilateral relations. Bilateral trade volume reached $252.58 billion in 2016， 40 times of that in 1992. China is now the largest trading partner， export market and source of imports of the ROK， while the ROK is Chinas third largest trading partner. Besides the continually growing trade volume， the two countries also signed a free trade agreement which came into effect in the end of 2015. South Korea has also been actively taking part in the establishment and operation of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. With increasing economic cooperation as the bedrock， despite setbacks， both countries have shown restraint to avoid further souring of bilateral relations.

The bilateral cooperation in the fields of science， technology， health， sports and tourism has also kept expanding， and people-to-people exchanges have grown increasingly active. This helps consolidate public support for bilateral ties. In 2016， personal exchanges between the two reached 12.96 million trips. In addition， there were about 67，000 ROK students studying in China and 60，000 Chinese students in the ROK， making the two countries the biggest source of overseas students for each other.

National security perceptions

Diplomatic frictions between both countries have occurred sometimes. But major reversals of bilateral relations were due to third party factors such as the issue between the U.S. and the DPRK. Though cooperation in the fi elds of politics and economy between China and the ROK has been strengthening， collaboration in terms of security remained a vulnerable part of their ties. Currently， the deployment of THAAD and the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue are the main source of concerns between the two countries.

Seouls announcement in July 2016 of the deployment of the THAAD system in the Peninsula led to a chill in China-ROK relations. Divergence in opinion， breakdowns in communication， and a lack of trust regarding the THAAD system brought deepening negative impacts on China-ROK ties. China saw the missile defense system as a threat to its strategic security， and perceived the ROK as acting as a U.S. puppet while jeopardizing the China-ROK strategic and cooperative relationship.

The deteriorating situation regarding the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue was another factor that adversely affected China-ROK relations. The nuclear issue has kept growing since the first nuclear crisis in 1993. Many theories have been aired as to why the issue has failed to be resolved， some pointing toward the U.S. responsibility， Chinas liability， or the DPRKs actions. But if we reflect on the past， it is actually a vicious spiral of security dilemmas between Pyongyang and other concerned parties. The worsening situation has had a negative impact on the security environment of Northeast Asia and has widened the gap between China and the ROKs policies toward North Korea. As the nuclear issue dragged on， the threat to the ROKs security strengthened the latters alliance to the United States.endprint