China should have some concerns about N. Korea
COMMENTARY
Eugene Chu

While Iraq and Iran have taken precedence in the news lately, there is still another country of great concern to both the U.S. and Asia: North Korea.

Only last week, North Korea rejected International Atomic Energy Agency requests for resuming inspections and shutting down its nuclear weapons development program. Because of China’s ties to North Korea and the rest of Southeast Asia, some people wonder how the country will act in this difficult situation. In my opinion, while China has concerns with the United States, it will intervene to stop North Korea’s nuclear weapons program for its own reasons.

To understand my reasoning, take recent Chinese history into account. In the 1970s, Japan re-established diplomatic relations with China. In 1992, China officially recognized South Korea. While there are still problems between China and Taiwan, tensions from the Cold War have cooled. Since China, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan have re-established political ties, all of them have built thriving economies and strong trade relations. While China and North Korea have had formal relations since the Korean War, politics have changed in the region.

China has eagerly accepted limited capitalism as part of its economic reform, but North Korea has still shown reluctance in giving up communist control of its economy. According to (cnn.com), China annoyed North Korea in October 2002, when it arrested a Chinese business investor for tax evasion, who was appointed to advise North Korea on economic reform. While relations with its other partners have developed into a multibillion-dollar trade, China’s relations with North Korea consist of massive foreign aid with no material return.

In the meantime, does China have anything to worry about if North Korea continues to pursue nuclear arms? Yes. According to Peter Worthing, professor of Asian history at TCU, while China has no direct security concerns with North Korea, it does have socioeconomic fears, such as a possible influx of North Korean refugees over its borders. According to a (townhall.com) column, if North Korea continues its nuclear weapons development, China may have to worry about South Korea, Japan or Taiwan developing nuclear weapons in response.

Many people mistakenly believe that China will side with North Korea in this nuclear weapons issue. In reality, China recently moved additional troops to the North Korean border to emphasize their displeasure with its neighbor. This is similar to U.S. opinion about China during the Cold War. While the Soviet Union and China were originally allies, due to various problems, they became enemies later on. Admittedly China does not have the direct security concerns of its trading partners or the United States. But, for its own reasons, China will support efforts towards a non-nuclear North Korea.

Eugene Chu is a senior political science major from Arlington.