Between Pyongyang and Seoul - a Rocky Road to Establishing Diplomatic Relations between Poland and the Republic of Korea
Between Pyongyang and Seoul - a Rocky Road to Establishing Diplomatic Relations between Poland and the Republic of Korea

Summary/Abstract: The paper presents South Korean efforts to establish economic and political relations with Communist Poland which resulted in establishment of diplomatic relations on 1 November, 1989. In the 1970s the Republic of Korea (ROK) decided to initiate contacts with selected Communist states in order to find new export markets and to get wider international recognition. It was a part of competition with Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) for legitimacy. For many years Communist Poland ignored South Korean initiatives and continued to maintain diplomatic relations with North Korea. Polish approach to South Korea has changed in the 1980s when Communist Poland faced a serious economic crisis and the ROK’s economy grew rapidly. The remarkable economic development of South Korea convinced the USSR and its satellites to perceive the ROK as a potential source of credits and investments. Taking into account internal problems and new Soviet policy towards South Korea, the authorities of Communist Poland decided to start trade with the ROK. However, South Korea’s representatives declared that the ROK would give credits and invest in Poland only after establishing full diplomatic relations. Prime Minister Mieczysław Rakowski gave a green light to do so, but the final step was made when the government was led by Tadeusz Mazowiecki. Thus, Poland became the second state from the collapsing Eastern Bloc to establish diplomatic relations with the ROK.

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