Trilateral trade relations among China,Japan and South Korea: Challenges and prospects of regional economic integration

China’s emergence as a global and regional manufacturing center has significant implications for the Northeast Asian economies of Japan and South Korea. China's trade with Japan and South Korea has been rapidly growing in relative importance, largely facilitated by China's rise as a regional production base as well as changes in the trade structures between China and her neighbours. Indeed, in recent years, China has been the main driving force behind Northeast Asian trade interdependency. The strong economic linkages and complementarities among China, Japan and South Korea augur well for the further integration among the three Northeast Asian countries. Establishing a trilateral free trade arrangement (FTA) provide new opportunities to enhance the three countries’ overall growth potential through trade and investment. However, such Northeast Asian regional integration is destined to be a long, drawn out process. The forging of a trilateral trading arrangement between China and her two neighbours remain a long term vision in view of the many outstanding issues and obstacles.     

South Africa's financial and economic prospects for the next five years

South African dominance of trade in Africa as well as its position as a regional hegemon was entrenched by the Trade, Development and Cooperation Agreement (TDCA) with the European Union in 1999. South Africa's full-blown integration into the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) formation since 2011 has brought new dynamics, however, as South Africa now has a marked BRICS orientation. Although the European Union (EU) as a bloc is still South Africa's largest trading partner, China has become South Africa's largest single-country trading partner. The question arises as to whether this new found loyalty makes sense in terms of South Africa's regional position and its trade prospects. Against the background of more intra-industry trade with the EU and the new and growing inter-industry trade with the other BRICS economies, South Africa's trade share of African trade has been in relative decline. This study uses an international political economy framework to analyse South African trade hegemony based on the TDCA and the possible effects of a shift towards BRICS. The conclusion is that, although the shift towards BRICS can politically be justified, economically it should not be at the expense of the benefits of the more advantageous relationship with the EU.     

韩中合作强化方案考察

2012年是韩中建交20周年。在克服漫长的冷战时期积累起来的敌对和不信任的同时,过去20年来韩中关系取得了耀眼的、飞速的发展。在正式层面上,两国经过善邻友好关系—合作伙伴关系—全面合作伙伴关系,最终建立了"战略合作伙伴关系"。在21世纪的新环境中,韩国和中国也可能比过去20年的发展更进一步,发展成追求战略上的共同目标和利益的战略共进关系。但伴随着这种正面的因素,也同时存在着美国和中国、中国和韩国的战略利益彼此冲突的危险。特别是在像美中势力转移时代这样不确定、不稳定因素繁多的时期,反而要在明确核心利益的差异是什么、承认彼此间差异的基础上更进一步,发展实现相互合作和双方利益的"和而不同"的外交。     

韩中建交二十周年及今后韩国对华政策的方向

本文的目的在于对韩中关系进行评估。自从1992年正式建交以来,韩中关系实现了全方位的发展,两国关系总体来说前景是乐观的。然而,在某些方面,如果缺少系统的管理,两国关系将会遇到难关。韩中两国尽管建立了重视对方的"战略关系",却也同时表现出了看待对方的认知差距和对彼此作用期待的差距。如果搁置这些差距,就会存在形成某种构架的危险。构架一旦形成,要想解决它就必须花费大量的机会成本。由此,缩小彼此间的认知差距和期待差距将是未来韩中关系发展方面非常重要的一个课题。为此,本文提出了五个目标(共进、三赢、复合性思考、关于韩中关系的民间协商、加强反思对话)和三个方向(中庸的安保本体性、谨慎外交、平衡安保)。     

Japan-Asia economic relations: Trade, investment, and the economic crisis

Japan has been and will continue to be an important economic player in the Asian region through its internationalization policy involving trade, foreign investments, aid, technical and other forms of economic cooperation. More recently, despite its own domestic problems, Japan has extended financial and other forms of assistance and support to the Asian economies which have been hit by the economic crisis. As it is in its interests that the Asian region survives and recover, Japan will indeed continue to lend a helping hand to Asia, either through unilateral or multilateral forms of assistance or both. Due to growing interdependence, Asia needs Japan and Japan needs Asia. This article analyzes Japan's economic relations with Asia. In particular, it hopes to present an overview of Japan’s involvement in Asia through trade and investments prior to the Asian economic crisis which began in July 1997. Moreover, this article provides an assessment of the crisis and identifies Japan’s responses and involvement towards the economic recovery of the crisis-hit economies in the region. The article draws from earlier versions of various papers presented at conferences and seminars in Washington, D.C. (1997), Japan and Mexico (1998), and Singapore and Thailand (1999).     

Asia‐Pacific economic cooperation: Progress and prospects

Secretary of Foreign Affairs Domingo L. Siazon Jr. of the Philippines discusses the Asia‐Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum's path to the present, and charts a map for its future. Siazon sees the importance of promoting greater private‐sector involvement in APEC and enhancing economic cooperation among member economies. Siazon discusses the special significance of this year's meetings to be held at Subic Bay in the Philippines, the former home of the US Pacific Fleet and now a growing industrial and tourism center. Pursuing APEC's free‐trade goals, he says, holds the brightest economic future for the Philippines and the region.     

Race and international relations: Brazil and South Africa

The study examines the perennial effort by African leaders and their people to attain a union government of Africa and eventually, a United States of Africa. Amidst a history of actual work and pragmatic choices by Pan-Africanists in the past who demonstrated better commitment and industry to this vision, the project cannot be dismissed as frivolous. Details of the recent Accra Declaration that concluded the African Union Summit in July 2007 reveal inherently difficult choices that African leaders have to make. These include tackling issues of sovereignty, territoriality, national laws versus sub-regional and African Union protocols that pervade constitutional arrangements across the continent. Issues of finance, engaging the African people, the political will and commitment of political elites are vital ingredients for the integration effort. The study reflects on the demand for a radical approach in attaining outcomes but opts for moderation backed with pragmatic choices. Even then, the regional economic communities (RECs), considered pillars of the integration process, must be well structured and given pronounced visibility and viability in order to achieve results.     

Reciprocity in Sino-American economic relations

He is the author ofChange, Continuity and Commitment: China’s Adaptive Foreign Policy (forthcoming, University Press of America).     

Japan’s relations with the United States: Issues and prospects

This paper was originally prepared for an international conference on “The U.S. and Asia,” sponsored by The Gaston Sigur Center for East Asian Studies, October 29–31, 1992. The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the government of Japan.     

战略合作伙伴关系和韩中自由贸易协定（FTA）

2008年韩中两国领导人宣布建立双边战略合作伙伴关系并推动韩中自由贸易协定的官方共同研究。韩中自由贸易协定将会成为东亚经济融合长期目标的一个主要步骤,并且它将会影响两国之间密切的经济合作。所以两国应该发展更有创造力和合作性的方法来顺利达成韩中自由贸易协定。从这个意义上来说,应当充分考虑EHP计划的复杂性和后续进程。     

The establishment of South Korean-Chinese diplomatic relations: A South Korean perspective

This article examines the process leading to establishment of the diplomatic relationship between South Korea and China in 1992. For that purpose, the article reviews first the Northern Policy of the Sixth Republic of Korea, whose major aim was to improve South Korea’s relations with the then socialist and communist countries, including the Soviet Union. Next the focus moves to the secret negotiations between South Korea and China. One of the major arguments of the article is that the expansion of commercial and trade relations between South Korea and China plus the end of the cold war contributed to the establishment of diplomatic relationships between the two neighbors.     

Authoritarian politics and economic reform in Uzbekistan: past,present and prospects

All the ex-Soviet Central Asian states have super-presidential, authoritarian regimes with poor human rights records. Using the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the article shows that Uzbekistan has sometimes improved, when the economy has been good, and has a mixed record on religious, labor, and language rights. All these states are sensitive to outside pressures if applied tactfully but try to maintain their independence from all outside powers.     

Eastern Europe and Japan-U.S. economic relations

Japan will probably benefit from changes in Eastern Europe. The government has offered a $1.9 billion assistance package to Hungary and Poland, its businesses are cautiously concluding joint ventures and investments there, and it is cooperating with Europe and the United States in reconstruction efforts. The effects on Japan-U.S. relations will be small though positive, since cooperative efforts on aid and in relaxing export controls seem to out-weigh risks of confrontation. The perception of an economic threat from Japan, however, is rising as cold war tensions ease.