Pride, Not Prejudice: National Identity as a Pacifying Force in East Asia Chung Eunbin

As shown by China's relationship to Japan, and Japan's relationship to South Korea, even growing regional economic interdependencies are not enough to overcome bitter memories grounded in earlier wars, invasions, and periods of colonial domination. In previous research scholars anticipated an improvement in relations through thick economic interdependence or increased societal contact. Although efforts to ease historical animosity have been made, few have proven to be successful in Northeast Asia.

Societal contact is already intense, as millions of Chinese, Koreans, and Japanese visit one another's countries annually as students, tourists, and on business trips. In economic terms, however, Japan and China already trade heavily: Japan has emerged as China's largest trading partner and China as second largest to Japan. But these developments have not alleviated international distrust