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EAST ASIA. EAST ASIA. REALM. Topics: China: Emerging superpower Japan’s monster 2011 earthquake and tsunami East Asia: The world’s economic powerhouse North Korean provocations The Taiwan conundrum. EAST ASIA THE GEOGRAPHIC PANORAMA. Triangular wedge between Russia and Southeast Asia.
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EAST ASIA REALM Topics: • China: Emerging superpower • Japan’s monster 2011 earthquake and tsunami • East Asia: The world’s economic powerhouse • North Korean provocations • The Taiwan conundrum
EAST ASIATHE GEOGRAPHIC PANORAMA • Triangular wedge between Russia and Southeast Asia. • Mountainsand plateaus. • Three major river valleys. • Deserts: • Takla Makan, Gobi, Ordos • Sichuan Basin. • Islands: • Japan • Hokkaido—cold northern island • Kyushu—warm southern island • Honshu—core area • Kurile Islands • Taiwan • Hainan • Peninsulas: • Korean • Shandong • Liaodong • A myriad of tectonic plate boundaries, island chains, and smaller islands in the East/South China Seas and the Pacific Ocean.
EAST ASIAA GEOPOLITICAL REALM • China—People’s Republic of China (PRC) • Dominant country - • Demographically, economically, and politically. • 85% of realm’s population. • Communist government. • Japan—monarchy • South Korea—democracy • North Korea—failed state • Mongolia—buffer state • Taiwan—Republic of China (ROC) • Political entity—not recognized as a sovereign state. • “1 Nation, 2 Systems” possible. (Ex. Hong Kong)
EAST ASIAENVIRONMENT/POPULATION • Collision of Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates. • Himalayan Mountains • Qinghai-Xizang (Tibetan) Plateau • Earthquakes • 2008—Sichuan Province • Magnitude 7.9, killed 90,000 • Pacific Ring of Fire • Pacific Plate subducting beneath the North American Plate. • March 11, 2011—Tohoku earthquake (Japan) • Tsunami (seismic sea wave). • Vulnerability of Japan • Particularly active tectonic-plate collision zone. • Densely populated areas in confined, low-lying plains on the east coast open to flooding. • Most nuclear power plants along susceptible shorelines.
EAST ASIAENVIRONMENT AND POPULATION Western and northern sectors • H (highland) climates • Tibet (Xizang) and Qinghai • B (desert and steppe) climates • Mongolia Northeastern sectors • D climates Eastern and southern sectors • C (humid-temperate) climates • Majority of East Asia’s population found in easternmost one-third of the realm’s territory. • Most densely settled population cluster in the world. • Agriculture, Fisheries, Resources. • Pacific ports and commerce.
The Great Rivers • Huang He (Yellow River) • Historic core area. • North China Plain. • Beijing. • Flows into the Bo Hai. • Chang Jiang (Yangzi) • Shanghai (China’s largest city) at the mouth of the river. • Three Gorges Dam—world’s biggest dam. • Xi Jiang (Pearl) • Hong Kong and Shenzhen. • Hub of globalization. • Liao • Northeast China Plain. • Mining and industry. Major DAMS built in China for water and hydroelectricity.
EAST ASIANATURAL RESOURCES • 1/4th of world’s population. • High demand for natural resources. • Japan • Limited domestic resources. • Set up global networks. • Urbanized and modern populations demand for consumer goods. • China • Cities and industries grew rapidly in 1980s. • Needs for oil, gas, metals, food, electricity, and water multiplied. • China replaced Japan as Australia’s primary customer. • Environmental costs in terms of air pollution and water contamination. • Ex. Chinese Olympic Games and SMOG hazards.
EAST ASIAHISTORICAL GEOGRAPHY Ancient China • State formation—long before Greece or Rome. • Neolithic (New Stone Age) • Millet, rice, and wheat domesticated. • Dynasties: • Han Dynasty—one of the longest lasting. • People of Han—ethnic Chinese. • Korea and Japan influenced by Chinese norms. • Japanese borrowed heavily from Chinese culture • Confucianism—infusions. “The Great Wall of China”
China’s Imperial Geography • Expanded and contracted over time. • Sinicization or Hanification= Growing state territory and centralized power. • Chinese cultural imprint from: • Korea to Vietnam, • Mongolia to Burma (Myanmar). • Diverse mosaic of ethnicities…
End of the Chinese Empire • Qing Empire—largest and last. • Europeans, Russians, Japanese Colonists. • Outsiders controlled trade, forced concessions and leases to foreign merchants. • British—Hong Kong • Portugal—Macau • Germany—Shandong Peninsula • France—in the south • Russia—Northeast (Manchuria) • Japan—Korea, Ryukyu Islands, Taiwan • Extraterritoriality—colonial powers immune to Chinese law. • Boxer Rebellion (1900)—resistance to foreigners. Revolutionary China • Nationalist movement • Sun Yat-sen • Overthrew Qing Dynasty (1911) • Chinese Communist Party • Mao Zedong • 1920s - Nationalists and Communists cooperated. • Chiang Kai-shek became the Nationalists’ leader. • Long March—Communist column of 100,000 people marched westward. • Nationalist forces attacked. • 20,000 survivors in Shaanxi Province. • Prepared for renewed campaign against Nationalists.
JAPAN’S HISTORICAL ROLE IN EAST ASIA From Isolationism to Imperialism • Isolationism • Foreign influence shunned. • Japanese people not allowed to travel outside Japan. • Foreigners not tolerated on Japanese soil. • Meiji Restoration—1868 • Introduced wholesale change in Japanese foreign policy. • Aimed at rapid modernization. • Emulated the West. • Moved the capital from Kyoto to Edo (renamed Tokyo). • Modernization built on Japanese cultural traditions. • Increased efficiency, from producing goods to running railroads to fighting war. • Westernization not desirable. • Japan was a unique combination of modern and traditional elements.
JAPAN’S HISTORICAL ROLE IN EAST ASIA Japan in China • 1894-1895 - First Sino-Japanese War. • Long-term Japanese presence on the mainland in the Northeast, Korea, and Taiwan. • 1904-1905 - Japanese defeated Russia. • More aggressive foreign policy. • 1910—annexed Korea. • 1931—took firm control of Manchuria (Northeast China). • 1937—full-scale war with China. • 1940—invaded French Indochina, Philippines, Dutch East Indies (Indonesia), Burma (Myanmar) and Malaysia. • 1941—attacked the U.S. at Pearl Harbor. *Militaristic History!
POST-WORLD WAR II EAST ASIA Communist China • October 1, 1949—birth of People’s Republic of China (PRC). • Communists completely overhauled Chinese society. • Great Leap Forward • Worst human-engineered catastrophe in history. • Estimated 30 to 45 million deaths. • Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). • Campaign against contamination from Soviet “deviationism and emerging elitism in society. • Youth organized into Red Guards. • Ordered to attack “bourgeois” elements and “opponents” of the system. • China’s leading intellectuals, moderate leaders, teachers, elderly citizens, and older revolutionaries were killed or tortured. • Deng Xiaoping became leader in the post-Mao period of economic transformation.
Japan’s Economic Miracle • Accelerated economic recovery: • Industrial giant . • Technological pacesetter. • Fully urbanized society. • Political power. • One of the most affluent nations on Earth. • Stalled economy: • Third-largest economy in the world. • Lost its dynamism and momentum. Japan’s Defeat and Recovery • World War II expansion ended when U.S. nuclear bombs devastated two Japanese cities. • Japanese surrendered. • Country lay in ruins. • Japan forced to accept a new constitution and territorial adjustments. • Could not spend more than 1% of GDP on military. • Accepted U.S. troops on its soil. • Japan induced to shift its focus to economic prowess. Tokyo, Japan - modern day.
EAST ASIA’S ECONOMIC TRANSFORMATION The Asian Tigers • Hong Kong, South Korea, Taiwan, and Singapore. • Replicated the Japanese economic miracle • Rapid industrialization. • Foreign investment. • Export processing zones for high value-added goods. • Computers, mobile phones, kitchen appliances, and electronic devices. • Became trading nations oriented to rich Western markets. • Most of world’s largest ports are located in East Asia. • Exports shipped mainly to North America and Europe. Chengdu City, China GROWTH!
EAST ASIA’S ECONOMIC TRANSFORMATION China’s Even Greater Economic Miracle • Historic transformation: • Creation of favorable environment for foreign investment to support the growth of manufacturing sector. • Chinese wages kept low. • Training programs aimed at upgrading skills of local workforce. • Stable political conditions with tight government control. • Adept at understanding how global capitalism works and how to put it to use. • Emerged as the most dynamic and fastest-growing component of the world economy. • 2010—surpassed Japan to become the second-largest economy in the world. • Example Chinese City = • Shenzhen: fastest growing city in human/world history! • 9 million people today. • Mandarin speakers. • Business-friendly.
GEOPOLITICS OF EAST ASIA Sino-Japanese Relations • Chinese and Japanese relations are problematic. • Japan invaded Manchuria in 1931 and occupied China, committing atrocities. • 1990s renewed Japanese presence after China’s economic reforms. • China has surpassed Japan in economic size and is the biggest exporter in the world. • Diplomatic relations are strained by clashing interests, historical memory, and cultural friction. • Senkaku Islands in East China Sea. • Seized by Japan in 1895, claimed by China and Taiwan. • Matter of national pride. • Recently discovered oil and gas deposits in territorial waters. • Ownership of islands and resources a modern issue.
GEOPOLITICS OF EAST ASIA The Korea Factor • Divided, partitioned, colonized, and occupied by Chinese and Japanese. • 1910—annexed by Japan. • 1945—Allied powers divided Koreainto North and South along 38th parallel. • 1950—North Korean Communist forces invaded South Korea. • 1953—military stalemate ended at the Cease-Fire Line. • North Korea’s nuclear capability. • Japan and South Korea opposed to North Korean regime and China takes a neutral position. • Leaders = Kim Jong-il (recently deceased), Kim Jong-un (son newly ascended into dictatorship). • North Korea - Dictatorship, harsh rule, human suffering.
GEOPOLITICS OF EAST ASIA Taiwan: The Other China • 1895—stolen from China by Japan. • 1949—Nationalists fled after Communist defeat on the mainland. • Chiang Kai-Shek named his regime the Republic of China (ROC). • Declared the ROC China’s “legitimate” government. • Installed in UN in China’s seat. • Received aid and weapons from the United States. • Grew economically and democratically. • 1972—Nixon arrived in Beijing. • ROC’s United Nations seat replaced by Beijing. • Economies of Taiwan and the PRC tightly integrated. • Taiwanese entrepreneurs built thousands of factories in mainland China. • 40% of Taiwan’s exports to China. • Two-thirds of Taiwanese “foreign” investments in China. • Many Taiwanese live and work on mainland. • Tibet - Similar to China’s conquer of Taiwan. • Buddhist/peaceful culture • Dalai Lama (leader) • Traditional methods • Popular resistance to China’s rule.
Homework Read Textbook Chapter 9 Homework: Choose one “@from the Field Notes” subsection topic in Ch.9 textbook; research and summarize (1 page). OR Choose a realm/region within or adjacent to South Asia to review in detail (1 page). Regions include China, Mongolia, Korea(s), Japan, Taiwan. Choose a culture, country, or feature to research and write about.