In most cases in the world, there is no neutrality in the face of the powerful. When you take a strong stance, either you are with me or you are a potential enemy. This fact becomes very clear when we look at the case of Belgium during the two World Wars that shook the world. As a small country squeezed between the two great powers of Europe, Germany and France, Belgium managed to survive in the cracks between these two major countries. Belgium declared neutrality both during the First World War and the Second World War. However, the outcomes were brutal. During the First World War, Germany, even before the war started, planned to pass through Belgium to launch a surprise attack on France. This so-called Schlieffen Plan eventually turned Belgium into a battlefield, where it suffered extensive looting to the extent of being called the raped country. Even during the Second World War, Belgium was not spared. Germany, as if it were natural, planned to pass through Belgium to attack France.

France and the UK also made plans to engage in battle with Germany in Belgium to prevent their own territories from becoming a battlefield. Neither side considered the opinions of the four neutral countries. It must be dealt with in the 68th article of the vague law. In this way, the strategy should be on the professor's side. It should be done with Mary, so the sound should be in pairs. The bolt is also rising, and it is opening right away. You have to give a sound to eat and drink a little. What should we do in the can?

Sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse sse please, that's right. It will be three times. You should remember what you wrote and didn't write. Oh, and because there might be a pair of socks missing, you should check inside. Starting from absorbing the water, emphasize it again. However, we do not have the capacity to care about any powerful nations, promises, or neutrality. Therefore, in order for a small country to maintain its neutrality, it must either lead an agreement among powerful nations or have enough power to persuade powerful nations to accept its neutrality.

It must be cunning diplomatic skills and strong self-defense capabilities. Did the Injo regime really possess both of these? The previously mentioned Gong Yu Deok-Gong's defection incident was a test worthy of testing Joseon's diplomatic power. Gong Yu Deok-Gong entered the royal palace in 1630, on April 9th, to seek asylum in the Amnok River to escape the Ming Dynasty. When the envoys arrived in Anyang, their purpose in coming to Joseon was to demand food support due to Gong Yu Deok-Gong's favor. At that time, the Ming and Joseon were brother countries, so they requested help as brothers. The Joseon court was in a dilemma. If they supported Gong Yu Deok-Gong with food, it meant supporting rebels against the more important ally, the Ming Dynasty. Openly supporting the Ming Dynasty's enemy would be an act of treason.

And already, due to the pursuit of shared interests by the Ming Dynasty, the request for support from the Ming army was coming in. Now, even if Joseon writes, they cannot help but clearly state which side they are on. The problem is that at that time, regardless of Joseon's intentions, there was a change in power from an unrelated force outside of Joseon, which was a critical moment affecting the Korean Peninsula. Whether Injo takes a clear stance, leaning towards the Ming or asserting independence, and even if he adopts a realistic and maintaining policy, if the confrontation between Ming and the Qing continues, eventually, Joseon will be forced to choose one side between the Ming and the Qing. In the end, Joseon accepts the Ming's request and rejects the Qing's request. By clearly stating which side they are on, Joseon is making a decision.

Even under the leadership of Im Gyeong-eop, they deployed troops to the Joseon factions and intercepted the enemy, plunging themselves into a war between Ming and Houjin. The relationship between Houjin and Joseon officially began as Houjin started to invade. When the Joseon army tried to control the situation by attacking the factions trying to intervene, the Houjin court felt threatened. It was at this point that discussions began in earnest about having to deal with Joseon this time. Fortunately, the imminent confrontation with the Mongols was temporarily postponed in order to deal with the current enemy. Despite the desperate efforts of the Joseon-Ming coalition forces, the factions eventually surrendered to Houjin. Hong Taiji was delighted, considering it a gift from heaven that the factions surrendered, making it possible to attack the countries across the sea.

Now the balance of power has clearly started to tilt towards the Houjin, and the crisis it brought was not the first in the Ming Dynasty. In 1533, the last king of the Nuren country, which remained in Wuyu, collapsed. The next year, Monbosu was captured. In 1630, Hong Taiji conquered Mongolia through a massive expedition and in 1635, he achieved repeated victories. Another stroke of luck came to Hong Taiji. The descendants of the conquered Mongol Empire dedicated themselves to the Great Yuan Empire. With the largest territory in history, Hong Taiji received the title of Emperor of the Qing Dynasty. However, the Emperor Hong Taiji's policy of maintaining tributary relations came to an end.

Until then, Joseon had been treating the Ming Dynasty as the father's country and the Qing Dynasty as the brother's country. Although it was a bit awkward to take a stance in between because the father and brother were fighting, they managed to navigate through it. However, if Hong Taiji is recognized as the emperor, it means the father will have two sons, which is an unbearable situation. Even King Gwanghae, who may have practiced neutrality diplomacy before Injo, would have found it difficult to maintain neutrality in this situation. Whether they knew about Joseon's concerns or not, Hong Taiji, who changed to the Qing Dynasty up to the 9th layer, held his coronation ceremony as the emperor. All the satisfaction, Mongolia, and the former sons of the surrendered Ming Dynasty swore allegiance to the new emperor.

Therefore, at this safe moment, an incident occurs where cold water is poured on the festive atmosphere. Boldly, even the Joseon envoy, Na Do-gam, did not bow until the end, instead of following the customs of the Qing envoy, who was firm in his stance. At that time, the envoy from the Qing dynasty was dispatched with a clear purpose. Coincidentally, Emperor Taejong of Joseon was holding his coronation ceremony. The two of them resisted the demand to bow and continued to resist until the brink of death. Refusing to bow, they held on to their stubbornness, stating that serving the country's principles is more important than personal beliefs or actions on the surface. Therefore, they were willing to risk their lives by not bowing, not knowing what individual thoughts may be, in order to uphold the principles of national governance.

In the case of the Ming Dynasty, the artificial regime basically did not recognize the Joseon Dynasty as a legitimate country, even if it understood the gravity, it could not believe in neutrality. Therefore, before finally attacking the Joseon Dynasty, they thoroughly surrendered to the investigation militarily, which is the only option in the military strategy of conquering the entire country. They may have had the perception that they had to show an example of progress through a progressive war in this society. Fortunately, the Eop Taiyez saved them and sent them back to Joseon. However, Hong Taiji's reign ended here. They were given the ultimatum of war or surrender, which is why the Ming Dynasty, the Qing Dynasty, and the delicate balance between them were maintained by Joseon's diplomacy.

Policies like this lead to ruin. In fact, maintaining neutrality between powerful nations is very difficult. It is only possible when there is peace between the powerful nations. If the powerful nations decide to confront each other, there is little that neutrality can do as a promise. However, that doesn't mean it's entirely hopeless. On the contrary, in such moments, there is a greater need to be more cold-blooded to avoid the worst situations. However, instead of handling it coldly, the Joseon Dynasty started leaning towards extremes. They began to accept shameful demands and even talk of destroying their own country began to spread. Oh, my goodness. In the end, the two people ended up in exile. At that time, there was a lot of anger among the people, supporting the anger of the officials.

In the East, centered around China, there is a civilization that regards the surrounding societies as barbarians and themselves as civilized, based on the dichotomy of civilization and barbarism. When this civilization and barbarism dichotomy comes to dominate the thinking of the rulers in determining wars and diplomacy, the problem is that they habitually look down on other societies, leading to even habitually thinking that the barbarian era will inevitably destroy other societies. This civilization and barbarism dichotomy was probably the extreme reason for the deteriorating relationship with the Qing Dynasty. The Qing, being on the barbarian side, had a fear that if they interacted closely with ignorant people, they would eventually become like them, even labeling them as pigs. In fact, after the war, there was a report about the Qing army that they never plundered the goods of the people greedily, showing a certain level of respect.

They are all very well organized, very skeptical, and their behaviors are clearly different. If you give them a chance, they will surely plunder disorderly, but they do not plunder. The military discipline is so strict that it is impossible to understand, and it is clear that there is some conspiracy. We can see how strong the bias was against the Joseon government at that time. However, if we simplify the world into two categories of civilization and barbarism like this, we will easily fall into extremism. And the danger of this simplification will not be limited to just the Imjin War.

EBS 다큐프라임 - '한국사 오천년, 생존의 길' 제4부- 병자호란, 궁지에 빠진 중립외교_#002

EBS offers a wide range of high-quality documentaries dealing with subjects, such as knowledge, science, culture and others.

EBS는 지식, 과학, 문화, 교육 등 다양한 고품질의 다큐멘터리를 선보이고 있습니다.