Filed Under: China, Development, Economy, North Korea, Publications, Special Reports

On February 3, 2011, the U.S.-Korea Institute at SAIS released a new report by Drew Thompson, Director of China Studies at The Nixon Center: Silent Partners: Chinese Joint Ventures in North Korea. China is considered North Korea’s economic lifeline. Chinese aid, trade and investment is critical to North Korea’s social stability and economic productivity and a key source of technology and hard currency. Presumably, without this trade and investment, Kim Jong-il would lack the means to secure the allegiance of elites that support his rule, making trade and investment with China particularly important for ensuring the regime’s survival. Joint ventures with China are an important aspect of the bilateral relationship, because in addition to propping up the regime in Pyongyang, they contribute to economic development in China’s northeastern “rust belt.” These Chinese financial investments in the DPRK are geopolitically significant not only in terms of Chinese strategic interests but also for South Korean aspirations to unify the peninsula.

Download a copy of “Silent Partners” by Drew Thompson and event transcripts HERE.