ABSTRACT
On 24 August 2005, both China (People’s Republic of China – PRC) and
South Korea (Republic of Korea – ROK) celebrated the thirteenth anniversary of establishing diplomatic ties – with no great fanfare. It was no
issue in the pages of South Korea’s major newspapers. Beyond the stereo-
typed verbal rituals, neither government tried to seize it as a public relations
event. Rather, an increasing number of policy analysts and university pro-
fessors from both countries called for a more balanced and more sober-
minded approach to the otherwise ‘‘mutually beneficial’’ relationship.1
