» Oh Tae-gyu.

North Korea and China are rapidly developing a close relationship as if they were a couple looking forward to their wedding day. It is troubling, however, to watch what seems to be an awkward honeymoon between the girl from a poor family sold into marriage against her will to the son with a luxurious mansion. The Sinification of North Korea that has become much more profound in recent years is not limited simply to political, economic and military areas. Its roots stretch into the deepest parts of daily life in areas like society and culture.

When Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao and North Korean leader Kim Jong-il agreed early last month to maintain friendly relations between the two countries on through the future generations, and when China agreed to provide tens of millions of dollars in free food and crude oil assistance and build the New Amnok (Yalu) River Bridge, they provided a state-level confirmation of this trend and a signal that efforts would be made to further strengthen it.

A particularly noteworthy case of China’s increasing influence over North Korea is the way in which the northern region of North Korea bordering the Amnok and Duman (Tumen) Rivers are being rapidly integrated into China’s three northeastern provinces. To put it simply, this region is becoming a fourth province of northeastern China. The construction of the New Amnok River Bridge suggests the impending establishment of a China-centered Sinuiju-Wihwado special zone. Meanwhile the Duman River basin is booming with infrastructure-building efforts linking China’s northeast with the Rajin and Chongjin ports in North Korea, and include a highway from Hunchun to Rajin, an extension to the Dongbiandao Railway running along the North Korea-China border on the Duman River, and orders received by Chinese businesses to develop the Rajin and Chongjin ports. China is filling the void of inter-Korean cooperation spawned by deteriorating inter-Korean relations, and is establishing development projects on its own in the regions around the North Korea-China border.

China’s influence is also sweeping into the areas of culture and daily life. Chinese people have long since come to constitute the bulk of foreign tourists in North Korea. In addition, display racks in stores are filled with Chinese goods, and the factories with Chinese machinery. Even the collective “Arirang” performance, which North Korea boasts of as “Juche art,” is reportedly seeing a Chinese influence. John Linton, professor of the Yonsei University College of Medicine who recently visited North Korea, said at a meeting that the biggest change he witnessed was that “a third of the ‘Arirang’ performance consisted of praise for China.” If a frequent visitor to North Korea like Linton was surprised at the change even in light of the special situation of the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between North Korea and China, things must be out of the ordinary indeed.

The Lee Myung-bak administration’s policy of applying pressure to North Korea has continued to play a decisive role in fomenting China’s increasing influence over North Korea. It appears the Lee administration is following the words of Ishihara Shintaro, a leading figure in Japan’s far right, who says the best way to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue would be for North Korea to be integrated into China. in effect, the Lee administration is digging its own grave by adopting a policy that increases North Korean dependence on China. China’s increasing influence on North Korea will clearly have the effect of weakening the foundation for forming an inter-Korean economic community, which means the road to unification grows even more distant, and of depriving small and medium businesses of the chance to find a means of survival through inter-Korean cooperation. South Korea will also lose more of its voice in issues involving the Korean Peninsula, including the North Korean nuclear issue. History to date has shown how deteriorating inter-Korean relations are accompanied by a weakened South Korean government voice on external affairs.

The Lee administration’s policy of pressure on North Korea has been riddled with flaws since its design stage. It is impossible for the administration to reap any effect without China’s support since in 2008 it accounted for 73 percent of all North Korean trade, and yet President Lee has taken the China variable all too lightly. The Lee administration naively banked on China joining a blockade of North Korea, and the result has been exactly the opposite, as was revealed in Wen Jiabao’s North Korea visit. The result is that South Korea’s policy of pressure has turned into a pathetic policy that promotes China’s increasing influence over North Korea.

In light of everything, the Lee government has been boldly repeating, “Time is on our side. All we need is a little more pressure.” China’s increasing influence over North Korea is racing to the point of no return, and no one can be seen trying to stop the catastrophe. Quo vadis MB?

The views presented in this column are the writer’s own, and do not necessarily reflect those of The Hankyoreh.