this post was submitted on 27 Apr 2025
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DPRK got nukes and stuck to the plan, but never got big like china. Just a matter of natural resources?
China has a billion people which goes a long way
~ 1.4 billion people vs. ~ 25 million, as well as having a small fraction of total territory would account for a lot
Not to mention, you know, being sanctioned to hell and back and being bombed into the past within living memory.
And possessing control over what was historically the least productive half of the Korean peninsula on account of it being mountainous as all hell while all the good farmland is in the hostile occupied southern half of the country.
Its never "just a matter of" anything. The Sino/Soviet split had deep ramifications across a broad spectrum of conflicts that had a material impact on Chinas reputation with the west.
They partnered with the west in Afghanistan, backing the mujahideen. They backed Cambodia and had growing tensions with Vietnam due to their ties to the Soviets. These actions showed the west they might play ball. Nixon going to China was an effort to drive a deeper wedge between Moscow and Beijing.
After the opening up of China, they convinced Western investors to pour money into their industries. The west thought they would become a liberal democracy any day, just like they think they're going to collapse any day.
Arguably the Sino/Soviet split was a large factor in the Soviet collapse.