The

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeas ...

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government i ...

recognized the formation of the

Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea The Korean Provisional Government (KPG), formally the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, was a partially recognized Korean government-in-exile based in Shanghai, China, and later in Chongqing, during the period of Japanese co ...

on April 13, 1919, as one of the participants of the

Cairo Conference The Cairo Conference (codenamed Sextant) also known as the First Cairo Conference, was one of the 14 summit meetings during World War II that occurred on November 22–26, 1943. The Conference was held in Cairo, Egypt, between the United King ...

, which resulted in the Cairo Declaration. One of the main purposes of the Cairo Declaration was to create an independent Korea, free from Japanese colonial rule. Bilateral diplomatic relations between the Government of the

Republic of Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its ea ...

and the Republic of China began in 1948, just after the foundation of the First Republic, hence making China, the first country to recognize the Republic of Korea as the sole legitimate government of Korea. After the

Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on m ...

in 1949, the Republic of Korea maintained relations with the Republic of China (

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

), which the island of Taiwan was also formerly under Japanese rule. Diplomatic relations between

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...

and the Republic of China (Taiwan) were terminated on 23 August 1992, followed by South Korean recognition of the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

(PRC, Communist China) and formation of bilateral recognition between them. But just shortly after, ROC-ROK relations resumed in 1993 under the "New Relations Framework Agreement".

Taipei City Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...

Seoul City Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the Capital city, capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the North Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea ...

's first

Sister City A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inter ...

. Both countries have strong non-diplomatic relations. South Korea sent

military personnel Military personnel are members of the state's armed forces. Their roles, pay, and obligations differ according to their military branch (army, navy, marines, air force, space force, and coast guard), rank (officer, non-commissioned officer, or ...

in the

Political Warfare Political warfare is the use of political means to compel an opponent to do one's will, based on hostile intent. The term political describes the calculated interaction between a government and a target audience, including another state's govern ...

training in

Fu Hsing Kang College The Political Warfare College (), also known as Fu Hsing Kang College (復興崗, "Renaissance Hill"), is a military academy in Beitou District, Taipei, Taiwan. During the Japanese occupation period, this location was the racetrack of Beitou; afte ...

Independence of the Republic of Korea and the Korean War

The

division of Korea The division of Korea began with the defeat of Japan in World War II. During the war, the Allied leaders considered the question of Korea's future after Japan's surrender in the war. The leaders reached an understanding that Korea would be l ...

, which ended 35 years of Japanese control, was followed by a period of

trusteeship Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, is a synonym for anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility to t ...

by American occupation in the south. The first General Election of 1948 South Korean Constitutional Assembly election founded the First Republic under the supervision of

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

. The Republic of China recognized the

Constitutional A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these prin ...

Korean government in the southern portion of the

Korean Peninsula Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

and opened an

Embassy A diplomatic mission or foreign mission is a group of people from a state or organization present in another state to represent the sending state or organization officially in the receiving or host state. In practice, the phrase usually den ...

Myeongdong Myeongdong () is a dong in Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea between Chungmu-ro, Eulji-ro, and Namdaemun-ro. It covers 0.99km² with a population of 3,409 and is mostly a commercial area, being one of Seoul's main shopping, parade route and tourism ...

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 of ...

, on 4 January 1949, four months after the establishment of the

. The

(PRC) was founded in 1949 following the

and Republic of Korea maintained relations with the Republic of China (ROC), whose government relocated to Taiwan, formerly a Qing prefecture that was under 50 years of Japanese colonial occupation from 1895 to 1945. The United Nations condemned North Korea's military aggression against Republic of Korea in

United Nations Security Council Resolution 82 United Nations Security Council Resolution 82 was a measure adopted by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on June 25, 1950. The resolution condemned the "armed attack on the Republic of Korea by forces from North Korea", while calling ...

and

United Nations Security Council Resolution 84 The United Nations Security Council Resolution 84 was adopted on July 7, 1950. Having determined that the invasion of South Korea by forces from North Korea constituted a breach of the peace, the Council recommended that the members of the Unite ...

. The ROC voted in favor of both

United Nations resolution A United Nations resolution (UN resolution) is a formal text adopted by a United Nations (UN) body. Although any UN body can issue resolutions, in practice most resolutions are issued by the Security Council or the General Assembly. Legal st ...

s. During the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

, the ROC supplied material aid to ROK, while the

gave North Korea

combatants Combatant is the legal status of an individual who has the right to engage in hostilities during an armed conflict. The legal definition of "combatant" is found at article 43(2) of Additional Protocol I (AP1) to the Geneva Conventions of 1949. ...

to support the People's Volunteer Army.

Cold War diplomacy

Both the ROK and ROC governments opposed

socialism Socialism is a left-wing Economic ideology, economic philosophy and Political movement, movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to Private prop ...

, as well as the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and People's Republic of China (PRC). Neither ROK nor ROC recognized or formed a diplomatic relationship with the DPRK and PRC governments. The Republic of Korea referred to the PRC as 'Communist China' (중공, 中共), and the ROC as 'Nationalist China' (국부중국, 國府中國; before 1960s) or 'Free China' (자유중국, 自由中國; after 1970s). The government of the ROC also considered the Republic of Korea government as the sole legitimate state in the

Korean peninsula Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

. "Seoul recognized Taiwan as the sole legitimate government of China" President Park Chung-hee visited

Taipei Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...

on a state visit in February 1966, in which he expressed solidarity with the ROC and South Vietnam, declaring that: 'We are not breakwaters which passively protect the port from onrushing waves. We are not standing still only to be gradually eroded by the waves of Communism.'

Termination of diplomatic relations

The Sixth Republic of South Korea furthered the

Miracle on the Han River The Miracle on the Han River refers to the period of rapid economic growth in South Korea, following the Korean War (1950–1953), during which South Korea transformed from a least developed country to a developed country. The rapid reconstru ...

to the

Economy of South Korea The economy of South Korea is a highly developed mixed economy. By nominal GDP, it has the 5th largest economy in Asia and the 13th largest in the world. South Korea is notable for its rapid economic development from an underdeveloped natio ...

and opened diplomacy to Communist Nations (including building the foundation of Inter-Korean relations and accepting co-existence with North Korea by entering the United Nations ). Seoul also hosted the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...

. President

Roh Tae-woo Roh Tae-woo (; ; 4 December 1932 – 26 October 2021) was a South Korean politician and army general who served as the sixth president of South Korea from 1988 to 1993. Roh was a close ally and friend of Chun Doo-hwan, the predecessor leader ...

's next political ambition was to begin implementing

Realpolitik ''Realpolitik'' (; ) refers to enacting or engaging in diplomatic or political policies based primarily on considerations of given circumstances and factors, rather than strictly binding itself to explicit ideological notions or moral and ethical ...

with the neighboring countries in

Northeast Asia Northeast Asia or Northeastern Asia is a geographical subregion of Asia; its northeastern landmass and islands are bounded by the Pacific Ocean. The term Northeast Asia was popularized during the 1930s by American historian and political scient ...

. South Korea's movement away from anti-communist foreign policy to improve relations with nearby communist countries resulted in a deterioration of relations with ROC. This change was introduced to appease North Korea and ease the political anxiety and softens military tension in the Korean Peninsula; Korea hoped to enable the possibility of a peaceful reunification in the Korean peninsula. As normalization began, ROK transferred

diplomatic recognition Diplomatic recognition in international law is a unilateral declarative political act of a state that acknowledges an act or status of another state or government in control of a state (may be also a recognized state). Recognition can be accor ...

from ROC to the PRC, and confiscated the property of the ROC embassy, transferring it to the PRC. Taiwan is a member of Property Rights Alliance. On 17 September 1991, the PRC withdrew its objection to South Korean membership in the

. South Korea was the last

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

n country with formal

diplomatic relations Diplomacy comprises spoken or written communication by representatives of states (such as leaders and diplomats) intended to influence events in the international system.Ronald Peter Barston, ''Modern diplomacy'', Pearson Education, 2006, p. 1 ...

with ROC.

Economy

The annual trade volume between South Korea and Taiwan is around US$30 billion, with semiconductor products have been the largest item in the trade over the past few years. As of April 2016, the total amount of mutual investments between the two sides reached around US$2.4 billion in areas such as communication, consumer products, finance, information technology, iron, medicine, metal, securities and semiconductor.

Flights between South Korea and Taiwan

After Seoul's recognition of the PRC government in Beijing, direct commercial flights between

and

operated by Korean and Taiwanese airlines were terminated. Cathay Pacific and

Thai Airways International Thai Airways International Public Company Limited, trading as THAI (, th, บริษัท การบินไทย จำกัด (มหาชน)) is the flag carrier airline of Thailand. Formed in 1961, the airline has its corporate h ...

however, operated the route as a Fifth Freedom sector. The reduction of scheduled flights caused tourist numbers from Taiwan to drop from 420,000 in 1992 to 200,000 in 1993, recovering only partially to 360,000 by 2003. On September 1, 2004, representatives of the two countries' unofficial missions, the "

Korean Mission in Taipei The Korean Mission in Taipei ( ko, 주 타이베이 대한민국 대표부; ) is the representative office of South Korea in Taiwan, functioning as a ''de facto'' embassy in the absence of diplomatic relations. Its counterpart is the Taipei M ...

" and the "Taipei Mission in Seoul" signed an aviation agreement allowing aircraft of each side to enter the airspace of the other. This permitted the resumption of direct scheduled flights by Korean and Taiwanese airlines and also allowed flights from Republic of Korea to

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainlan ...

to fly over the island of Taiwan instead of detouring over

mainland China "Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...

or the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. Analysts estimated this would save Republic of Korean airline companies

₩ The won sign , is a currency symbol. It represents the South Korean won, the North Korean won and, unofficially, the old Korean won. Appearance Its appearance is "W" (the first letter of "Won") with a horizontal strike going through the cent ...

33 billion (

US$ The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

29 million at 2004 exchange rates) in fuel costs and other fees.

Kim Young-sam's visits to Taiwan

Former

President of South Korea The president of the Republic of Korea (), also known as the president of South Korea (often abbreviated to POTROK or POSK; ), is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Korea. The president leads the State Council, and is ...

Kim Young-sam Kim Young-sam (; or ; 20 December 1927 – 22 November 2015) was a South Korean politician and activist who served as the seventh president of South Korea from 1993 to 1998. From 1961, he spent almost 30 years as one of the leaders of t ...

visited Taipei for five days in July 2001. During this visit, he met President of ROC (Taiwan)

Chen Shui-bian Chen Shui-bian (; born 12 October 1950) is a retired Taiwanese politician and lawyer who served as the president of the Republic of China (Taiwan) from 2000 to 2008. Chen was the first president from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) whic ...

at a lunch banquet, but the two were unable to come to an agreement over the wording of a joint written statement urging the resumption of direct air travel. In October 2004, following the aviation agreement, Kim came to Taiwan once more at Chen's invitation. He delivered a speech at

National Chengchi University National Chengchi University () is a public research university in Taipei. The university is also considered as the earliest public service training facility of the Republic of China. First established in Nanjing in 1927, the university was subs ...

and toured port facilities in Kaohsiung, the sister city of Republic of Korea's

Busan Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.4 million inhabitants. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea, ...

Taiwan admission into APEC and participation in OECD

The ROK government acted as the interlocutor and supported Taipei's admission into

Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC ) is an inter-governmental forum for 21 member economies in the Pacific Rim that promotes free trade throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

(APEC) in 1991. Republic of Korea altered the nature of political acronym of Member States to Member Economies in APEC to make APEC formally a Trans-Pacific Economic Forum. Personnel of Taipei's Ministry of Foreign Affairs are forbidden to participate in the APEC, but the Minister of Economic Affairs of Republic of China, a special envoy appointed by the President of Republic of China and business representatives from Republic of China that publicly, can attend annual APEC Meetings under the name of Chinese Taipei. Taipei can also host non-ministerial APEC consortiums and

workshops Beginning with the Industrial Revolution era, a workshop may be a room, rooms or building which provides both the area and tools (or machinery) that may be required for the manufacture or repair of manufactured goods. Workshops were the onl ...

concerning topics in which Taiwan has specific strengths, such as

technology Technology is the application of knowledge to reach practical goals in a specifiable and Reproducibility, reproducible way. The word ''technology'' may also mean the product of such an endeavor. The use of technology is widely prevalent in me ...

and

small and medium enterprise Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) or small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are businesses whose personnel and revenue numbers fall below certain limits. The abbreviation "SME" is used by international organizations such as the World Ba ...

. These consortia and workshops are intended to address only success on

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analyzes ...

and business-related issues with other APEC Member Economies. Taiwan's participation in APEC is supported by the United States and accepted by People's Republic of China. The

APEC Business Travel Card The APEC Business Travel Card (ABTC) is a travel document issued to business travellers who are citizens of APEC participating economies. Valid for five years, the card eliminates the need for its holder to possess a visa when visiting other APEC ...

(ATBC) scheme applies to business travelers to and from Taiwan. South Korea also supported Taiwan's initial participation in

OECD The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; french: Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques, ''OCDE'') is an intergovernmental organisation with 38 member countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate e ...

and subsequent activities.

Re-establishing non-official relations

The Republic of Korea re-established non-official relations with the Republic of China in 1993, interchangeably and reciprocally as

and Taipei Mission in Korea. Taipei Mission in Korea, Busan Office is located in the southern region of ROK. Since 1993, there is a significant trade volume between the two nations. Two countries have mutually extended to 90 days of stay with the exemption of visa for visitors from July 1, 2012. The 19th Seoul-Taipei forum was held on October 13, 2010. In 2022 South Korea and Taiwan signed an agreement to recognize each other's

drivers license A driver's license is a legal authorization, or the official document confirming such an authorization, for a specific individual to operate one or more types of motorized vehicles—such as motorcycles, cars, trucks, or buses—on a public ...

Education

There is a rigorous scholarly exchange and there are multiple ROC Chinese international schools in Republic of Korea: Seoul Overseas Chinese High School

Seoul Chinese Primary School Seoul Chinese Primary School or Hanxiao Chinese Primary School (; ko, 한국한성화교소학교) is a Republic of China (Taiwan)-oriented Chinese international primary school located in Myeongdong,Kuo, Grace.Education keeps overseas Chinese ...

Seoul Overseas Chinese High School Seoul Overseas Chinese High School or Hanseong Chinese Middle and High School Overseas Chinese Middle and High School Busan Overseas Chinese High School, Busan (; ko, 부산화교중고등학교) is a Republic of China (Taiwan)-oriented Chinese international school in Dong-gu, Busan Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Se ...

* Overseas Chinese Elementary School Daegu * Overseas Chinese Middle and High School Daegu * Overseas Chinese School Incheon * Suwon Zhongzheng Chinese Elementary School * Overseas Chinese Elementary School Uijongbu * Wonju Chinese Elementary School * Chungju Chinese Elementary School * Onyang Chinese Elementary School * Kunsan Chinese Elementary School There are two South Korean international schools in the ROC: *

Taipei Korean Elementary School Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the n ...

(타이페이한국학교) *

Kaohsiung Korea School Kaohsiung City (Mandarin Chinese: ; Wade–Giles: ''Kao¹-hsiung²;'' Pinyin: ''Gāoxióng'') is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Kaohsi ...

(가오슝한국국제학교)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:South Korea-Taiwan relations 1949 establishments in South Korea 1949 establishments in Taiwan Bilateral relations of Taiwan