If nothing unexpected happens, South Korea may once again become a developing country.

Because as long as you understand the history of South Korea’s rise and the complex international situation today, you will realize that this country is actually extremely fragile.

Why do you say that? Today I will talk about this issue in detail.

Firstly, let’s talk about the secret of South Korea’s rise.

Everyone knows that South Korea is the only newly developed country in the 21st century, but do you know how miserable it was at the beginning?

In the 1950s, South Korea’s per capita GDP was only 1/2 of that of North Korea, and 85% of the mineral resources of the entire Korean peninsula were in the north. At that time, South Korea was a poor purely agricultural country, with an annual import volume of up to 300 million dollars, while the export revenue was only 30 million dollars. The huge trade deficit pressed South Koreans out of breath, and the country was on the verge of bankruptcy for several times. It is no exaggeration to say that without the assistance of the United States and the West, it might not take several years, and half of South Koreans would have to go to the north.

Seeing this scene, Koreans were particularly anxious, so they decided to carry out industrial transformation. However, there was an important prerequisite for industrialization, which was that a large number of literate people were needed. But at that time, South Korea was severely punished by the Japanese, because the Japanese deliberately took more than 30000 teachers away from South Korea when the World War II was defeated and evacuated, leading to a gap in Korean educational talents. This insidious move immediately directly interrupted the process of industrialization in South Korea.

So there’s no other way, if you want to develop, you can only find a way to get the first bucket of gold, and then cultivate industrialized talents. But where does the money come from? In the end, the South Korean government came up with a magical plan, which is to sell people.

And sellers can be divided into two situations:

One is to sell one’s body.

Another way is to sell labor.

Let’s talk about the first scenario first.

In order to serve the US military well and create GDP, in 1951, South Korean President Syngman Rhee personally approved the establishment of a large number of state-owned brothels, which were called “UN Comfort Stations” to the outside world. The Korean women who worked there were called “base village women” or “foreign princesses”. Their main job was to serve the US military who had withdrawn from the front line, alleviate their anxiety, and then earn some money to support the country’s economic development.

With the continuous escalation of the Korean War, a large number of US troops flooded into the Korean Peninsula, and the business of state-owned brothels that survived around US military bases also became increasingly prosperous. In 1953, there were over 350000 women working in the color industry in South Korea, almost providing one-on-one services with the US military.

In the era of Park Chung hee, it was even more outrageous. While declaring the color industry illegal, Park Chung hee took the initiative to open hundreds of “legal business areas” across the country. In order to provide better services for the US military, he also actively carried out industrial upgrading.

for instance:

1. Transform the gathering place of prostitutes into a tourist attraction.
2. Tax exemption for clubs that use prostitutes.
3. Provide free houses to prostitutes.
4. Teach prostitutes English, dance, and etiquette.
5. Establish medical clinics and sexually transmitted disease clinics in the service area.

In short, the main focus is on sustainable and high-quality development.

Even to encourage more women to join the wave of serving in the US military, the South Korean government took the initiative to whitewash these professional and technical talents, calling them heroes of the new era, great contributors to South Korea’s economic development, and deserving patriots.

Under this brainwashing propaganda, South Korea has sparked a wave of learning professional skills, with over one million people working in the color industry at its peak.

The harvest is that nearly 200 comfort centers in South Korea steadily bring in more than 10 million dollars of income every year, accounting for 1/25 of South Korea’s foreign exchange income. South Koreans use this money to buy machines, recruit talents, and industrialization is gradually on the right track.

Of course, in addition to the contribution of the color industry, there is another thing that has greatly contributed to the rise of South Korea, which is the signing of the “Seller Agreement” between South Korea and West Germany.

The full name of this agreement is the Agreement on Economic and Technical Assistance, which roughly means that West Germany gives money, South Korea gives people, men work as miners, and women work as nurses, sending a large number of cheap Korean labor to Europe to serve Germans.

I know some people think it’s a good job to be a nurse. But think about it. If these jobs are really good, why don’t Germans do them themselves? The answer is that working in a humid and narrow mine is extremely risky. A large number of Koreans are killed when blasting with explosives. As for Korean women who go to work as nurses, they mainly do things that Germans are unwilling to do, such as taking care of the elderly and cleaning up the bodies.

By selling its own labor force in this way, South Korea can earn around $50 million in annual income, and then use this money to develop its economy.

Of course, this is just the tip of the iceberg of South Korea’s “selling people plan”. In order to obtain development funds, after the outbreak of the Vietnam War, South Korea also sent a large number of soldiers to support the US military. According to data statistics, from 1965 to 1973, in eight years, South Korea sent a total of more than 300000 division and brigade level combat troops, second only to the US military in terms of troop numbers. In the end, at the cost of sacrificing 4624 people and injuring more than 17000 people, it received comprehensive support from the United States.

For example, the United States gave a large number of military orders to South Koreans, which alone made South Korea a whopping 800 million yuan, as well as the transfer of technology in the defense industry, technical and financial assistance in the industrial field, etc. According to the statistics afterwards, during the ten years of the Vietnam War, the annual growth rate of South Korea’s economy has been maintained at about 10%, and the income gained by South Koreans through the Vietnam War has accumulated to more than $5 billion (about $170 billion today).

This is the secret of South Korea’s economic takeoff, and also the unknown truth behind the so-called ‘Han River Miracle’.

However, even so, it was difficult for South Korea to become a developed country because there are many countries in the world that have the conditions to complete industrialization, but few have successfully advanced to become a developed country. Another reason why South Korea was able to embark on the fast lane of rise is the suppression of Japan by the United States.

In the late 1980s, the rise of Japan has aroused the vigilance of Americans. In order to suppress the Japanese, the United States began to actively support the Korean people. A large number of advantageous industries originally belonging to Japan began to be gradually annexed by South Korea.

For example, in the field of mobile phones, Japan’s Sony and Ericsson also had a glorious period of time, but this cake was eaten by South Korea’s Samsung and LG.

In the field of home appliances, the market used to be dominated by Sony, Toshiba, and Hitachi, but was later replaced by Korean white goods.

In addition, shipbuilding, communication, semiconductor, chemical industry, electronics and other industries, which used to be the dominant fields of the Japanese, have now been basically embezzled by the Koreans.

It can be said without exaggeration that the rise of South Korea corresponds to the decline of Japan, because every time South Korea develops an industry, Japan loses another industry. This is the truth behind South Korea’s rise.

Of course, industrial upgrading alone is not enough to support the rapid development of South Korea for decades. After all, Japan’s size is so large, and even if South Korea eats it dry and wipes it out, that’s all. What’s more, Japan has only lost part of its industrial advantages, and has not been out of the game in all respects. So in order to obtain continuous development momentum, South Koreans made two important decisions:

One is to establish a country with cultural industries, vigorously develop cultural industries such as music, film and television, games, and animation, and rely on the soft power of these countries to drive the national economy. After more than 20 years of development, South Korea has now become the world’s second largest cultural and entertainment power after the United States, which is also an important reason for their economic development.

In addition to vigorously developing the cultural industry, South Koreans have also picked up the old line, that is, vigorously developing the color industry. Because they know that the industry is fast in money, so the support is also fantastic.

For example, during the 2002 Japan South Korea World Cup, 300000 foreign tourists poured into South Korea for consumption. In order to play the host role, South Korea’s color industry made full efforts. According to the statistics after the World Cup ended, the number of professional places in South Korea soared to more than 50000, and the number of employees also rose significantly to 330000. Relying on the color industry alone, it created 24 trillion won of income, accounting for 4.1% of South Korea’s GDP that year, almost equal to South Korea’s military expenditure that year. South Koreans successfully upgraded the color industry into a pillar industry as important as agriculture, forestry and fishery.

It is precisely because of the various reasons I mentioned above that South Korea has been able to rise from a poverty-stricken country to a developed country.

Seeing this, I know everyone may be confused. If so, why do you say that South Korea may once again become a developing country?

The answer is simple, because of our rise.

Almost all of South Korea’s advantageous industries are important targets for our industrial upgrading.

For example, in the field of lithium batteries, LG Chem in South Korea once accounted for one-third of the world’s supply and was an important revenue generating industry for them. However, with our rise, our CATL has now seized 37% of the world’s share, while LG Chem only has 13.7% of the market share left.

There is also the shipbuilding industry. Once South Korea was undoubtedly the world’s number one, but now China’s shipbuilding industry accounts for 60% of the world’s orders, while South Korea only has 24% left.

There are also fields such as LCD panels, automobiles, semiconductors, etc. With our rise, Korean companies have also lost a large area of market share.

These factors combined create a magical scene, where South Korea had a trade surplus with us from 1994 to 2022, a total of 28 years. However, within two years of our industrial upgrading, South Korea directly turned into a trade deficit with us.

That is to say, South Korea is currently experiencing a situation similar to that of the Japanese in the past. Every time we rise an industry, they lose one. Finally, when we fully complete the industrial upgrading, their good days are likely to come to an end.

This is also the fundamental reason for the current political turmoil in South Korea, as the dramatic changes in East Asia and even the world have transmitted pressure to the country, leading to intense internal struggles.

It is important to remember that the economy is indeed the core of all problems. Although this statement may sound clich é d, it is indeed a wise saying.