China?s Diplomatic Overture toward North Korea and North Vietnam in the Early Cold War Era

Despite its dire economic conditions, the People's Republic of China (PRC) provided various types of assistance to North Korea and North Vietnam in the early Cold War era. However, the two small Asian states did not make firm commitments and China questioned their allegiance. What explains China's effort to seek an alignment with North Korea and North Vietnam? What is the underlying logic behind assistance the PRC provided? This article claims that Beijing's endeavor to keep Pyongyang and Hanoi on its side reflects the logic of binding. The binding strategy was designed to neutralize the Soviet wedging to wean the two small socialist states away from their alignment with China. The most desirable outcome from Beijing's binding was to have Pyongyang and Hanoi stay away from Moscow or at least stay neutral.