North Korea (From Sea to Shining Sea)

North Korea, officially the Korean Republic, was a short-lived republic that governed the northern half of the Korean peninsula from 1975-1988.

Predecessor
Following the Second Sino-Japanese War, Korean land north of the 38th parallel was succeeded from Japan to China. Immediately, a central issue in China became the fate of Korea. The Nationalist Party wanted to annex the territory as the Korean Province of China, while the Communist Party wanted to leave it as an independent nation. With Chiang Kai-shek as prime minister, a puppet state of China, the "Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea" was established in northern Korea. With the election of Mao Zedong in 1964, northern Korea was given the rights to govern itself and slowly began reuniting with the Korean Kingdom. In 1975, the Chinese government held a referendum to determine the fate of north Korea. Following a majority vote for independence, Mao signed the North Korean Charter on July 23, 1975. This established North Korea as independent from China, and the Korean Republic was established.

Short-lived Korean state
This new republic, heavily influenced by China, formed relations with China, Russia, and its neighbor to the south. Independent from China, the reunification of northern and southern Korea accelerated. The 2 governments formed the Korean Pact; an economic and political union between the 2 countries. In 1987, the 2 nations merged their 2 armies: the "Korean Independence Army" in the north and "Korean National Army", into 1: the "Korean People's Liberation Army". Less than 1 year later, the Constitution for the Unification of Korea" was signed and ratified by both governments, ending the division of Korea.