<P> In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, various Western countries actively competed for influence, trade, and territory in East Asia, and Japan sought to join these modern colonial powers . The newly modernized Meiji government of Japan turned to Korea, then in the sphere of influence of China's Qing Dynasty . The Japanese government initially sought to separate Korea from Qing and make Korea a Japanese satellite in order to further their security and national interests . </P> <P> In January 1876, following the Meiji Restoration, Japan employed gunboat diplomacy to pressure Korea, under the Joseon Dynasty, to sign the Japan--Korea Treaty of 1876, which granted extraterritorial rights to Japanese citizens and opened three Korean ports to Japanese trade . The rights granted to Japan under this unequal treaty, were similar to those granted western powers in Japan following the visit of Commodore Perry . Japanese involvement in Korea increased during the 1890s, a period of political upheaval . </P> <P> Korea was occupied and declared a Japanese protectorate following the Japan--Korea Treaty of 1905, and officially annexed in 1910 through the annexation treaty . </P> <P> In South Korea, the period is usually described as a time of Japanese "forced occupation" (Hangul: 일제 강점기; Ilje gangjeomgi, Hanja: 日 帝 强占 期). Other terms used for it include "Japanese Imperial Period" (Hangul: 일제 시대, Ilje sidae, Hanja: 日 帝 時代) or "Japanese administration" (Hangul: 왜정, Wae jeong, Hanja: 倭 政). In Japan, a more common description is "Japanese rule" (日本 統治 時代 の 朝鮮, Nippon Tōchi - jidai no Chōsen). Korea was officially part of the Empire of Japan for 35 years, from August 22, 1910, until the formal Japanese rule ended on September 2, 1945, upon the surrender of Japan . The 1905 and 1910 treaties were officially declared "null and void" by both Japan and South Korea in 1965 . </P>

What nation did japan turn into a colony