Japan Recognises Korean Independence From China

In 1876 Japan and Korea concluded the Treaty of Kanghwa, an agreement that formally recognized Korea as an independent state rather than a tributary of China. Korea had long stood within the Chinese sphere as a tributary of the Qing dynasty and had pursued a policy of seclusion. The newly modernizing Japan, having itself been opened by Western pressure, now applied similar pressure to its neighbor.

After a naval incident off the Korean coast provided a pretext, Japan compelled the Korean government to negotiate, and the resulting treaty opened the country to Japanese trade and contact. Three Korean ports, including the existing port at Pusan, were opened to Japanese merchants, who were also granted extraterritorial privileges, making the agreement one of the unequal treaties characteristic of the era.

By declaring Korea independent, the treaty was intended to loosen Chinese influence over the peninsula, and China at the time did not openly object. In practice, however, the agreement marked the beginning of expanding Japanese involvement in Korea and of a growing rivalry with China and later Russia for dominance there. That rivalry would lead in time to war and ultimately to Japan's annexation of Korea in 1910.