ABSTRACT
After the Sino-Japanese War a rivalry between Russia and Japan developed in Korea, where the Russians seemingly had gained the upper hand by emerging as the king’s protector. In the middle of 1896, Japan and Russia signed an agreement providing for mutual financial assistance to Korea and limitations on troops that could be stationed there. Russia, however, tended to be more active in Korea than was warranted by the agreement, and another convention, the Nishi-Rosen Agreement, was signed in April 1898, reaffirming the provisions of the prior arrangement. Russia also agreed not to “hinder the development of commercial and industrial relations between Japan and Korea.” Russia was more interested in extending its interests in Manchuria than in Korea, so a number of Japanese officials favored a policy of persuading Russia to recognize Japan’s special interests in Korea in return for Japanese recognition of Russian interests in Manchuria. Russia, however, was unwilling to relinquish its influence in Korea.
