While the six-party talks about the North Korean nuclear programme seem to have come to a standstill, the relations between the two Koreas have significantly improved while South Korea has grown closer to China and to Japan, despite periodic frictions. The "peaceful rise" of China as the dominant power is causing alarm in Tokyo and in Washington, seen against the decline of US influence, prompting Japan to build up its military might. Taiwan on the other hand, seems to grow even more dependent on China.
