Formation of Bilateral Diplomatic Relationships in East Asia:

 Along the East-West struggle, Japanese diplomatic lines were entirely divided, and Japan chose
to stand with the West, despite significant US influence. In the early 1970s, soon before the war
ended, it established diplomatic relations with Communist countries such as China and Mongolia
in 1972, and North Vietnam in 1973. Japan re-established formal relations with Vietnam and
Cambodia in 1991 and 1992, respectively. All Asian countries are now eligible to join the global
interstate system and collaborate on an equal footing. This is in direct contrast to the pre-World
War II period, when Asian countries were subjugated as (semi-)colonies of the West or Japan.
 The Cold War had a significantly greater impact on South Korea than it had on Japan. Only in the
1990s did it establish diplomatic relations with (ex) Communist countries: with the Soviet Union
in 1990, Mongol in 1990, China and Vietnam in 1992, Laos in 1995, and Cambodia in 1997. In
the 1970s, it didn't have a formal partnership with Indonesia until 1973, while Myanmar and
Singapore didn't have one until 1975. It is also worth noting that it established diplomatic
relations with China, which came as a huge surprise given the old Chinese World Order.
 Until 1992, China and Korea had never had an equal partnership. Thus, the formation of a
contemporary diplomatic connection between the two countries was a significant event in the
region. For the first time in history, both countries are on an equal footing. This is a good place to
start between China and Korea, a Western-style modern diplomacy.
 North Korea's formal relations with Asian countries and two big powers from beyond the region.
The case of North Korea is notable in two ways: its dissimilarity and similarity to that of South
Korea. In theory, it has maintained good relations with Communist and former Communist
countries (Mongolia, China, North Vietnam, the United Republic of Vietnam, and the Soviet
Union), as well as Prince Sihanouk of Cambodia.
 During the mid-1970s, Asian countries, both liberal and communist, worked hard to develop an
interstate structure within the area. It should have been the first major turning point in the history
of the Asian international system.
 North Korea now has diplomatic contacts with the majority of Asian countries (Brunei in 1999
and the Philippines in 2000). Its connections with Japan, South Korea, and the United States are
still informal.
 The Asian interstate system now fully accepts China. It established diplomatic relations with
Singapore in 1990, Brunei in 1991, and South Korea in 1992 in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It
eventually abandoned its backing for the Pol Pot side in the 1990s, while maintaining a positive
connection with Sihanouk in Cambodian politics. In the mid-1970s, Thailand, Malaysia, and the
Philippines established diplomatic relations with China. Hence the mid-1970s almost became a
turning point in the history of Asian international relations, which was later overturned by an
aggressive Vietnam.
 Vietnam was divided into North Communist and South ‘Liberal’ Governments until the
unification under North Vietnam in 1976. As a result, worldwide supporters were split into two
factions, one for the North and one for the South like the Vietnam War. Vietnam has maintained
its national integrity since unification up to the present. In 1992, it established diplomatic
relations with South Korea and Brunei, and in 1995 with the United States. Today, Vietnam's 'Doi
Moi' policy is no longer a revolutionary (f)actor in East Asian international relations.
 Since Malaysia's independence in 1963, it has maintained a diplomatic connection with the
United States. Malaysia's independence from the Great Britain resulted in territorial or legitimacy
issues with its two neighbours (the Philippines and Indonesia), as well as the severance of
diplomatic relations with them once or twice in the following years. Malaysia, along with the
Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, and Indonesia, created the ASEAN in 1967 to keep Communist
forces out of the Indo-Chinese Peninsula. Furthermore, it demonstrated a distinct diplomatic style
in dealing with both internal and external Communist forces. In 1971, it established diplomatic
ties with Mongolia, and in 1973, with North Korea. In the ASEAN countries, Malaysian
diplomacy is typical. As a result, member countries acted similarly when they established
diplomatic relations with Communist countries in Asia in the mid-1970s, and more or less
similarly when they put pressure on Vietnam to withdraw from Cambodia and persuaded the
Sihanouk faction, and possibly the Pol Pot faction, to establish order from within.