A Comparative Study Of North Korea And South Korea’s Diplomacy In The Middle East

Since the end of the Korean War, opposition and confrontation between Northand South Korea are reflected in politics, economy, military and so on during morethan one half century, among which, the conflict and opposition of the foreignrelations between the two sides have also been concerned by the global society andacademics for a long time. Otherwise, this concern has been centralized in theAsia-Pacific region. In fact, a full-scale diplomatic confrontation between N. Koreaand S. Korea exists in the Middle East as well where have the great attraction for thetwo countries because of its peculiar political,economical and cultural environment.Considering this, these two countries has taken Middle East into the diplomaticconcern. The diplomatic strategy of the two countries has showed opposite as theconfrontation of the state natures. During the Cold War, the two Koreas had started adiplomatic contention in the Middle East. After that, the two countries made anadjustment in the diplomatic strategy towards the Middle East., which means theimplementation of diversified diplomatic strategy to expand their diplomatic space.This thesis aims to Analyze comprehensive struggle of the bilateral diplomacy in theMiddle East in the political, economic, military and cultural fields over the years.Besides, the causes, performances, results of this struggle as well as the impact onthe two countries and the Middle east have also been discussed.The confrontation of the two Koreas’ diplomatic strategy in the middle east isoriginated from the opposite nature of the two countries. This antagonism arereflected in the political, economic, cultural, military areas. In the political field,South Korea mainly cooperate with Pro-Western countries while the North choosesAnti-Western countries. The antagonism between the two countries shows a politicalinfluence competition. In the economical field, S. Korea has energy trade andeconomic cooperation with the pro-Western countries and actively participate inglobal and regional economic organizations involved in the Middle Eastern countries.On the contrary, N. Korea have economic cooperation with the anti-Western countriesin the Middle East. The opposition shows the mutual exclusion of the economic cooperation partners. In the cultural field, S. Korea disseminate Christianity andtraditional culture in the Middle East while the North focus on the spread of thecommunist ideology. The opposition changes into the mutual exclusion in the processof the culture dissemination. In the military field, South Korean participates in theWestern-led military action and pursues military cooperation with the pro-Westerncountries while North Korea pursues arms trade and military cooperation with theanti-Western countries. Military diplomacy between the two countries showssignificant opposition.The two Koreans’ diplomacy in the Middle East have had a significant impact onthe two countries, the regional and global situation. On the one hand, diplomacy in theMiddle East fulfills the national interest of the two Koreas and improve the economy.On the other, The two Koreas confrontational diplomacy in the Middle East has had anegative impact on the Korean Peninsula, the region and international situation: itexacerbated antagonism and confrontation in the Korean Peninsula and deepen thedifferentiation of the Middle East. More than that, international hotspot issues aremore difficult to solve for this reason.The confrontation of the two Koreas’ diplomatic strategy in the middle east isoriginated from the opposite nature of the two countries, while the influence of the bigpowers exacerbates this confrontation. One inevitable result of the confrontationaldiplomacy is the shift trend of the influence of the two countries in the Middle East.From the Cold War to the present, Status and influence of the two Koreas in theMiddle East are gradually changing: South Korea’s diplomacy in the Middle East isincreasingly active, which means it continues to make diplomatic achievements. Tothe contrary, North Korea’s diplomatic space in the Middle East is shrinking.