This paper examines the development of North Korea-China relations during the Cold War by analyzing the foreign policy of Communist China from the 1950s and to the 1970s. From a macroscopic perspective, the distinctiveness of North Korea-China relations during the Cold War was defined by the Cold War structure in East Asia that forced solidarity between the two countries. Amid the Cold War confrontation between the two ideological camps, there was a basic coincidence of interests and positions between North Korea and China, which were pitted against the ‘common enemy,’ the United States. Factors such as the common historical experience of fighting together in war, the closely interdependent geopolitical conditions, and the ideological homogeneity of the communist regime, all acted together to further strengthen the solidarity between North Korea and China. In other words, the distinctiveness of North Korea-China relations stemmed from the circumstances and conditions in which the two nations had to share mutual interests.
<br>North Korea-China relations from the 1950s to the 1970s were influenced by the distinctiveness of the bilateral relations, China’s policy on the Korean Peninsula, and changes in Communist China’s foreign policy. Among them, the distinctiveness of North Korea-China relations and China’s policy on the Korean Peninsula have influenced North Korea-China relations as fixed constants. And the foreign policy chosen by Communist China in line with the changes in the international environment surrounding North Korea and China was a variable that affected the relations between the two countries. The greatest national task facing Communist China since the establishment of the regime was to successfully implement the economic construction of New China, and for that purpose, stability in the international environment around China was absolutely necessary. Accordingly, China’s foreign policy aimed to create a stable international environment, and China’s policy to maintain the status quo on the Korean Peninsula was prepared as an extension of such a diplomatic line. Therefore, China’s policy toward North Korea during the Cold War was derived from China’s policy to maintain the status quo on the Korean Peninsula. China’s policy to maintain the status quo on the peninsula was consistent throughout the Cold War era, and it was a constant that defined the development of North Korea-China relations between the 1950s and the 1970s along with the distinctiveness of North Korea-China relations. Meanwhile, North Korea-China relations during the Cold War were also influenced by China’s domestic and international situations and China’s foreign policy, which were variables in the development of the bilateral relations.
<br>This paper analyzes the relationship between North Korea and China amid the characteristics of China’s diplomatic lines for each period from the 1950s to the 1970s. Chapter 1 examines China’s policy toward North Korea and the development of North Korea-China relations in the 1950s, when China was completely focused on its relations with the Soviet Union. During this period, China implemented an ‘interventionist policy’ toward North Korea based on close cooperation with the Soviet Union. China’s ‘interventionist policy’ toward North Korea switched to an ‘appeasement policy’ in 1956, and this study explains the cause, process, and result of such a policy shift in the context of the development of North Korea-China relations in the 1950s. Chapter 2 analyzes the impact of China’s ‘left turn’ in China’s foreign policy in the 1960s, the escalating conflict between North Korea and China during the Cultural Revolution, and the deepening of the Soviet security threat to China on the development of North Korea-China relations. Chapter 3 explores the impact of China’s great diplomatic change in the 1970s on North Korea-China relations, and examines the relationship between the two countries in the context of Communist China’s decision to implement reform and opening policy and improvement in China-US relations.
