DEVELOPMENTS

Since his rise to the power in February 2008, South Korean president Lee Myung-Bak has significantly alleviated the historical political and social tensions between Japan and South Korea (ROK.) The newly elected Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has followed suit by encouraging cooperative efforts to build up an East Asian regional community. The two countries have enhanced cooperation through several channels, including their participation in the Six Party Talks, development assistance in Afghanistan, the combating of piracy in Somalia, as well as youth and academic exchanges.

Though these developments suggest healthier bilateral relations, the legacy of World War II still haunts the Japan-ROK relationship. After more than sixty years, the countries still engage in rows over visits to Yasukuni Shrine, sovereignty tussles over the Takeshima-Dokto Islands, controversial history textbooks, and the issue of Korean comfort women. Although the Japan-PRC-ROK trilateral summit has been institutionalized since December 2008, the institutionalization of bilateral cooperation intended to help build trust between Japan and South Korea has yet to materialize. Understanding the historical conflict helps contextualize current political developments in East Asia and sheds light on future prospects for and limitations of Japan-ROK relations.

DEVELOPMENTS

The People’s Republic of China has grown increasingly anxious about maintaining stability in its western regions, particularly Xinjiang and Tibet, where ethnic and religious minorities have staged large-scale protests and riots in the last two years. Beijing has repeatedly blamed the Dalai Lama for the Tibetan riots. The Communist Party Secretary in Tibet, Zhang Qingli, called the spiritual leader "a wolf wrapped in a monk’s habit, a monster with a human face and animal's heart” and bluntly acknowledged the tense state of relations, saying: “We are now engaged in a fierce blood-and-fire battle with the Dali clique, a life-and-death battle between us and the enemy." The harsh rhetoric has deepened the mistrust between the Tibetan people and the Chinese leadership. Beijing has similarly rejected the Dalai Lama’s repeated calls for constructive dialogue.

The Tibet issue has remained in the international spotlight for decades, due in large part to the charismatic appeal of the Dalai Lama. When he eventually passes, most scholars and analysts agree that Beijing will attempt to manipulate the power vacuum to its advantage. China’s strategy is two-pronged: first, to control the succession process of the Dalai Lama and, second, to ramp up pressure on India to discontinue its support of the Tibetan Government-in-Exile, which has existed in Dharamsala since the Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959. Chinese leaders have already successfully altered the process by which Tibet chooses high-level incarnate religious figures such as the Panchen and Dalai Lamas. By examining the selection process and analyzing how Tibet affects the Sino-Indian relationship, one can gain a greater understanding of Beijing’s potential strategy as well as the future of Tibet.