Strengthening South Korea-Japan Relations: East Asia's International Order and a Rising China (Asia in the New Millennium)

At the conclusion of WWII, no part of the world experienced a more dramatic transformation than East Asia.The region's political stability throughout the postwar period prompted exponential economic growth that ultimately established South Korea, Japan, and China as East Asia's most important powers. While many citizens of these nations now live in a time of unprecedented prosperity, the arrangement that supported this region's transformation is fragile.With the second largest economy and a burgeoning military sector, China is widely acknowledged as the preeminent rising world power.The onus of maintaining balance in the region now rests primarily with South Korea and Japan in partnership with the United States.However, because of long-standing weaknesses in South Korea-Japan relations and an inconsistent US commitment to the region, the possibility that China could usher in a more uncertain era of revisionism has never been more likely. In Strengthening South Korea-Japan Relations: Ea