The Korean and Vietnam wars were two of the defining events of the 20th century. While the origins of both are rooted in their countries’ respective histories, much of the world regarded the wars as proxies for the larger Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. To understand the Korean and Vietnam wars and their influence on 20th-century geopolitics, researchers need original sources covering Cold War politics, East-West relations, colonial history and more—all of which are found in American Proxy Wars: Korea and Vietnam.

The Seoul Press (publ. 1907–1937) was Japan’s Korean news flagship, its mission to validate the natural justice of Japanese imperialism in Korea, and Japan as the redeeming, organising and modernising force in East Asia. The Seoul Press represented the Japanese administration of Korea to the world. Missing from this collection are the years 1910–1927.

Here is a unique collection of rare documents relating to the Japanese occupation of Korea, from the late nineteenth century up to 1945, representing a highly significant period in Korean history, and vital for a true understanding of many reflexes in the Koreas today. In 1876, Japan “opened” Korea to outside contact for the first time. What followed was a period of sparring with the Chinese over the right of influence in Korea, a rivalry which culminated in the Sino-Japanese war of 1894-95. Following victory, Japan steadily increased its presence and interference in Korean matters until the outright annexation of the country in 1910. Korea would remain a Japanese colony until the end of the Pacific War in 1945.

Drawn from the holdings of the C.V. Starr East Asian Library at Columbia University, New York, the collection includes more than 62,000 pages in Japanese language, 18,000 pages of Western (in most cases English) early impressions of Korea, and Korean texts (16,000 pages).

Part 4: Asia, Pacific and East Asia

This fully searchable online collection—one of eight individually available area subsets of FBIS Daily Reports, 1974-1996—consists of the following specific FBIS series: APA (Asia & Pacific, 1974-1987) and EAS (East Asia, 1987-1996). As the indispensable source for insights into decades of turbulent regional history, these reports provide students and scholars with national and occasionally local perspectives through a wealth of original political broadcasts and newspaper coverage.

Global Oriental Special E-Books Online, Collection 2007-2010 is the electronic version of the book publication program of Global Oriental in 2007-2010.