Reasons to Support RoChu...

...Yeah. Well, this was a request from (that I have been putting off to no end due to nothing more than my own laziness) to list reasons why I ship RoChu (Russia and China from Hetalia.) She put together a very lovely journal titled Reasons to Ship Ameripan  after watching a youtube video (deviantart journal: invaderpumpkinqueen.deviantart… ) that listed 100 total reasons to support FrUK. After that, she wanted to put together similar lists for some of the less understood but still beloved pairings in the Hetalia fandom. Of course, being the Chinese history nerd and RoChu addict that I am, she wanted me to take the reigns on this one.

Now, I'll be straightforward here, there are a lot of people who really hate RoChu because it "makes no sense," "is everywhere," or "has no history."  To all of this I say "bullcrap." I have no problem with people who support different ships than me even if I highly disagree, but these statements are, in fact, all untrue. Saying that Russia and China have no history together is just like saying France and England have no history, or Sweden and Finland. They actually have some very deep rooted history and close current relations. In fact, I'd say their history is even deeper than that of some of the more popular pairings. Second, it's everywhere? Okay, tell that to USUK. It's difficult to look up any Hetalia pairings without getting USUK, and I don't complain. Not only that, but the pairing of RoChu is actually loosing a lot of popularity (along with other glorious pairings such as GerIta...why world?!) And finally...it makes no sense? Well, I suppose that's why I'm writing this journal in the first place. Now, keep in mind that I DON'T mind you disliking this pairing nor am I trying to convince you to ship it though you should. These aren't reasons why you should ship RoChu, but reasons why I do. And hopefully it will clear up a lot of misconceptions about this pairing.

Now let us begin. owo

Reasons to Support RoChu

1. Russia and China established trade agreements as early as 1698.

2. In late 1917, China sent troops to Russia to aid in settling a Russian civil war between pro- and anti-Communist groups.

3. After the formation of the Soviet Union, Russia supported China in fights against the Japanese government and the Japanese invasion of China.

4. After the Boxer Rebellion/Righteous Harmony Society Movement, Russia demanded the largest amount of money of all the opposing countries to China, but used a large portion of that money to modernize and industrialize China's failing economy.

5. During the Second Sino-Japanese war (consisting of the Nanking Massacre) during WWII, Russia and China signed a non-aggression pact and became each others closest allies during the war. The two supported each other throughout the war, and the two countries ended up losing more people in the war than any other country.

6. In 1931 the unrecognized state known as the Chinese Soviet Republic was formed by a pro-communist leader.

7. In the webcomic strip "The Story of Little China and Teensy Japan," it was Russia who comforted China after the latter was attacked by Japan, telling him that the two of them would definitely get along again before stating that the whole world would become one with Russia anyway.

8. The two have always supported each other as countries, both in times of war and in times of peace.

9. During WWII, Russia won back some of China's territories and gave them back to China.

10. On August 8, 1945, the Russians won a decisive victory against Imperial Japan, while the Chinese had suffered heavy casualties, so the Russians took some of the weapons from their prisoners and gave them to the Chinese to help them fight again.

11. The China, Soviet Union: Treaty of Friendship and Alliance was signed in order to help gain independence from Mongolia. Additionally, this treaty happened to be concluded by the two on February 14...Valentine's Day~.

12. Fans of Hetalia from both countries strongly support the pairing of RoChu, with RoChu fanart even making it on Russian and Chinese news, with Chinese reporters mistakenly referring to China as Russia's "wife." (Most of the Russian fans in particular that I have talked to really support this pairing.) They were even voted as the number 1 pairing for both countries in a poll. rochu-squad.livejournal.com/52…

13. In the comic strip "Before the Boxer Rebellion," Russia defends China, telling England and France to stop demanding things from him since it was clearly upsetting him, before happily stating that China wanted to live with him anyway.

14. Immediately after the formation of the People's Republic of China, Russia became it's closest and most supportive ally. However, since the support fell below Chinese expectations and the expiration of their treaty of friendship, the Sino-Soviet split occurred.

15. In the Post-Release Interview strip, we see some RussiaxChina (provided you read Japanese.) www.geocities.jp/himaruya/heta…

16. In 1976, the Chinese leader, Mao, died and the two countries were able to stabilize their relations again before the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

17. In the comic strip "Italy's Big Brother," China comes home after serving France and England to find Russia wearing his clothes and eating an early dinner. Russia makes himself at home and acts like this is a normal occurrence. (China is less than pleased, however.)

18. Russia is known to frequently stalk China in a Panda costume. Also, in a shorter strip, China is shown hugging Shinatty-chan before realizing that Shinatty-chan is actually nearby exercising, leaving him to wonder who he is hugging as a dark aura surrounds the person. It's not exactly stated outright here but...

19. Although he typically gets annoyed by him, China is shown to worry about Russia's general health and well being when he works himself too hard.

20. Both have family parallels, from both having stalker siblings (Belarus and South Korea) to both having their entire families leave them at one point, providing an understanding that only they can have for each other.

21. Unlike most others, Russia is never shown being directly aggressive or cruel to China, instead treating him in a warm and friendly manner. Likewise, China is rarely shown being actually afraid of Russia and instead treats his childish and strange actions as a mild annoyance.

22. Russia was actually the country to introduce China to communism.

23. Things that are well-liked in Russia (such as the singer VITAS) are often equally popular in China. There have even been multiple Russian musical tours in China.

24. Both times in the webcomics/anime that a member of the G8 seemed to be missing, Russia insisted that it must be China (who isn't even a member of G8). In the anime, England accused him of only saying that because he wanted China to be there.

25. During the Cold War, the two were very close allies against the rest of the world. They signed the Sino-Soviet Treaty of Friendship, Alliance and Mutual Assistance in 1950, which allowed for a $300 million loan from the Soviet Union to China. (Yet RusAme is known as the "Cold War Pairing." ._.)

26. In official artwork for the webcomics and anime, much like Germany and Italy or France and England, the two are frequently shown together.

27. Due to China's motherly nature and experience with children, he would be able to handle Russia's childish nature and even help him stay somewhat mentally stable.

28. In 1991,  the two signed the Sino-Soviet border agreement, which set up demarcation work to resolve most of the border disputes between the two states. Initially it was signed by China and the Soviet Union, but it was resumed by Russia after the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

29. The Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation Between the People's Republic of China and the Russian Federation, a twenty-year treaty, was signed by the two countries in 2001. The treaty outlines the basis for  peaceful relations, economic cooperation, diplomatic and geopolitical reliance, and even military cooperation and an implicit defense pact.

30. On the eve of a 2013 state visit to Moscow by Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin remarked that the two nations were "forging a special relationship."

31. Out of all the relations these two have with other countries, they have the least bloody history with each other.

32. During Russian President Boris Yeltsin's first official visit to China in 1992, he and Chinese President Yang Shangkun signed a Joint Statement on the Foundation of Mutual Relations, in which the two countries pledged to establish good-neighborly, friendly and mutually beneficial relations. Chinese and Russian officials also signed 24 additional statements.

33. On May 3, 1998 the Russian and Chinese foreign ministries exchanged notes confirming the start of the telephone Hotline link between the two countries' presidents. In December of that year, Russia and China issued a joint communique pledging to build an 'equal and reliable partnership'.

34. Both countries, as two of the three most powerful countries in the world, have stated views that the United States is their main competitor in the global political scene. (Not good for my country necessarily, but great for me as a shipper of RoChu~!)

35. In October of 1998, the Russian President stated that the two countries intended to cooperate in high-tech sectors such as aircraft manufacturing, nanotechnology, biotechnology, computer science, and medicine. This also happened to be during a press conference in China.

36. The two countries are constantly supporting each other economically, with China's growing economy needing a vast amount of imports while Russia's economy is largely driven by the need for the export of natural resources.

37. The official relationship between the People's Republic of China and the Russian Federation has been upgraded three times since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1991. Beginning as "good-neighborly and mutually beneficial" in December 1992, it evolved into a "constructive partnership" in September 1994, and finally a "strategic partnership of coordination" in April 1996.

38. In 2001, Russian company Yukos proposed the unprecedented Eastern Siberia-Pacific Ocean Oil Pipeline Project, which would link Yukos's oil refinery in Angarsk to Daqing, in northern China. At the time, rail routes were the only means of transporting oil into the growing Chinese market.

39. In an interview with China Central TV on the day of the Chinese Presidents arrival in Russia, the Russian President cited the high-level exchanges and other bilateral achievements in what both governments refer to as their "strategic partnership" as evidence of what he called "the highest level of ties in the history of Russian-Chinese relations."

40. China has been referred to in the news as "a small Russia." www.jamestown.org/programs/chi…

41. On May 8, 2010, President Hu Jintao met with some Russian veterans who aided China in the battle against Japanese aggressor troops in the World Anti-Fascist War, and called for further strengthening of China-Russia ties. news.xinhuanet.com/english2010…

42. It has been stated in news reports that stability and peace between Russia and China "makes the world in general and East Asia in particular a safer place." www.au.af.mil/au/aul/bibs/russ… (I'm making you read =w=.)

43.  The Russian President has expressed the desire "even more intense ties with Communist China." www.canadafreepress.com/index.…

44.  Russian strategist Kingsmill Bond has stated that "Russia and China make the perfect couple." www.nytimes.com/2010/06/10/bus…

45. In a Christmas comic, Russia stated that his boss told him that he should use force to make other countries become more friendly with him, before saying that China has been rather friendly with him lately and perhaps he should visit him next year. (Note the cute little heart over his head while he says that.) www.hetarchive.net/scanlations…

46. In this non-linear comic, Lithuania falls asleep on Russia's shoulder during a conversation, only to wake and find Russia replaced with, of all things...a panda? www.hetarchive.net/scanlations…

47. As noted by several RoChu fans, in the Pre-release Interviews (linked above), China and Russia's descriptions of the type of person they would be interested in pretty much describe each other.

48. In a drawing done by Himaruya of the Allies and Nordics sleeping, Russia is shown having tied something around China's neck and holding onto it while snuggling close to him. himaruya.blog61.fc2.com/blog-e… (And yes, I realize that his scarf is also wrapped around America's leg...)

49. In polls asking both Russians and Chinese which country they thought was the most friendly with their country, the majority in both countries chose each other.

50. The majority of the Chinese fandom do not view or portray Russia as insane or sadistic, thus supporting the view that China would see Russia as more than the psychopath most other countries view him as.

51. Marriages between Chinese men and Russian women is escalating, and most Russian-Chinese marriages seem to be for no reason other than love. rbth.asia/society/2013/06/18/r…

52. In China, round eyes, pale skin and light hair, large size, and big noses are considered very attractive. (This one was actually told to me by my sister who's living in China right now.)

I'll add more as I find them, I just really wanted to hit that big 50. On another note, I couldn't really add this as a reason to ship them, but I've noticed that one of the most common comments on RoChu fanart or videos is "OMG, I'm not supposed to ship this but it's so cute!!! Whaaaaaaai?! ;A;" I just have to wonder...why? I mean, there's nothing wrong with thinking a pairing is cute. Why do so many people feel they have to hate RoChu? It really doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me, even if you already ship them each with someone. There's an awful lot of multishipping in Hetalia, and RoChu is generally a good pairing, so why hate on it because it's well-liked? Oh, well. I guess I'll never understand that.

Also, I'd like to take this moment to address other popular ships. For the most part, Russia is depicted as a sadistic rapist in most other pairings that include him, which in my view is completely ridiculous. Russia is childishly cruel and naïve, but fairly good-natured and unaware of his own cruelty. This doesn't fit the description of a rapist at all. What's more, most of the ships including China are with countries that have greatly tormented and abused the Chinese in the past (in particular IggyChu and NiChu), and that's something I really wouldn't mind some explanations for (Maybe I'm just not getting it.) These two countries both have extremely tragic histories, and as they are also my favorite characters in Hetalia, I think they deserve to be with someone who can truly love them and who they can truly love back. But, hey, you decide what you want to do. Also, if you love RoChu and have a reason for shipping them that isn't on here, go ahead and comment and I'll add it~! Have a lovely and RoChu filled day.