North Korea Profile
History and Current Policies and Characteristics
Throughout its history, Korea has been invaded, influenced, and fought over by its larger neighbors. Korea was under Mongolian occupation from 1231 until the early fourteenth century. The unifier of Japan, Hideyoshi, launched major invasions of Korea in 1592 and 1597. When Western powers focused “gunboat diplomacy on Korea in the mid-nineteenth century, Korea’s rulers adopted a closed-door policy, earning Korea the title of “Hermit Kingdom. Thoughthe Choson dynasty recognized China’shegemony in East Asia, Korea was independent until thelate nineteenth century. At that time, Chinasought to block growing Japanese influence on the Korean Peninsulaand Russian pressure for commercial gains…