CCOT Essay: Korea Relatively isolated from the outside world, Korea was forcefully involved in international interactions after the Mongols used the peninsula as a way to reach and invade Japan. This eventually led to major changes in the international politics and interactions of North East Asia such as increasing dependence on China and the split between North and South Korea, a situation which still persists today. Korea also succumbed to a period of isolation, weakening the internal strength of the nation; however, it still maintained its connections with Japan and China while rejecting all other foreign influences. After Korea was used by the Mongols as a way to take control of Japan, neighboring civilizations realized the convenience …show more content…
The Pro-Chinese population of Korea was very conservative and rejected all foreign influences, other than the authority China had over their nation. Because of this rejection, Korea began to move backwards. Their nation grew weaker because Korean rulers relied heavily upon the Chinese, and was therefore unable to grow stronger.
Evidence of Korean reliance on the Chinese was proven in Korea’s reluctance to sign treaties. Korea rejected a treaty from the United States, but when urged by China to sign it, they immediately complied, and also signed treaties with other nations directly after that. Korea also grew more open to foreign influences; New Zealand and South Korea recently expressed an interest in becoming more closely tied in terms of trade and commerce.
After the Japanese invasion in 1592, Korea withdrew from the rest of the world, only maintaining necessary contacts with China and Japan. During this period of isolation, the internal strength of the nation declined even further, and the already weakened military became even feebler. A few days ago, Japan, China and Korea announced they would be cooperating to prevent the spread of Ebola. It’s evident that the three countries have maintained close ties for