Week of May 9-May 13

Monday- Discussed forum posts and Korean War

Korean War-

Origins

Korea was invaded and ruled by Japan from 1910 until 1945
After WWII, Korea was split into two-North and South at the 38th parallel
An election was going to be held to eventually unify Korea
The United Nation held an election in 1948
The Soviet Union refused to allow participation in the election in their occupied zone
Instead, they handed over power to the North Korean Communist Party under Kim IL-Sung
The South elected the nationalist exile Syngman Rhee
US government stated in January, 1950 that Korea was "outside of our defense perimeter"
This encouraged North Korea to be aggressive
South Korean President Syngman Thee and North Korean Kim IL- Sung both wanted to reunite Korea under their own systems
Because of the US withdrawal, the North Koreans were the ones able to go on the offensive
The People's Republic of China and the Soviet Union were wary of a war in Korea
Mao and Stalin were concerned that it would encourage American intervention in Asia after just leaving
Kim was able to manipulate both Mao and Stalin into supporting their invasion of South Korea

The War Begins

On June 25, 1950, North Korean forces invaded the South
Using Soviet equipment, their surprise attack was very successful
Within days, South Korean forces retreated
Seoul was captured by the North Koreans in early July
Eventually the South Korean forces, and the small number of Americans in Korea, were driven into a small area in the South
With the help of US supplies and air support, the South Korean forces managed to stabilize this area
Although more UN support arrived it looked as though the North would gain control of the entire peninsula
The invasion of South Korea came as a complete surprise to the United States
On hearing of the invasion, Truman agreed to use US airstrikes against the North Korean forces
General Douglass MacArthur was put in charge of American forces in the Pacific

United Nations Police Action

United Nations Security Council voted to send troops to help South Korea
US, Great Britain, France, China, and the Soviet Union were permanent members that could veto the "police action"

UN Attacks

In order to help troops in Pusan Perimeter, MacArthur ordered an amphibious landing far behind the North Korean troops further North
United Nations troops landed an Inchon and faced mild resistance and quickly recaptured Seoul
The North Koreans, finding their supply lines cut, began a rapid retreat northwards from the Pusan Perimeter
UN and S.K. forces drive northward from the Pusan Perimeter to unite with the Inchon troops
The United Nations troops drove the North Koreans back past the 38th parallel
Due to the victory at Inchon, the goal of saving South Korea had been achieved
The US/UN decided to continue into North Korea to try and unite the country
This greatly concerned the Chinese, who worried that the UN forces might not stop with North Korea and might continue into China
Many in the west, including General MacArthur thought that spreading the war to China was a good idea
Truman and other leaders disagreed
MacArthur was ordered to be very cautious when approaching the Chinese border
Eventually, MacArthur disregarded these concerns

China Retaliates-

The Communist Chinese said they would react if the UN forces encroached upon the border at the Yalu River
Mao wanted Soviet help and saw intervention as defensive: "If we allow the U.S. to occupy all of Korea...we must be prepared for the US to declare...war with China," he told Stalin
Mao's forces invaded North Korea on October 19th
Soviet assistance was limited to providing air support for the Chinese
The Soviet role was known to the U.S but they kept quiet to avoid any international and potential nuclear incidents
380,000 Chinese troops pushed the United Nations troops back to the 38th parallel, the pre-conflict border
The Chinese assault caught US troops by surprise, as war between China and the United States had not been declared
On January 4, 1951, Communist Chinese and North Korean forces re-captured Seoul
Due to the tough situation, MacArthur mention that atomic weapons might be used, must to the alarm of America's allies
In March, 1951, UN forces succeeded in repelling the North Korean and Chinese troops from Seoul

MacArthur Removed

MacArthur was removed from command by President Truman on April 11, 1951
He didn't listen to the orders of the President. He was told to stay out of China and leave them alone and he didn't want to
MacArthur was succeeded by General Matthew Ridgeway
He was able to slowly drive back the enemy to the 38th parallel

The rest of the war involved little territory change and lengthy peace negotiations
Even during the peace negotiations combat continued
For the South Korean and allied forces the goal was to recapture all of what had been South Korea
Eventually a cease-fire was established on July 17th, 1953 near the 38th parallel
A DMZ was established around it, which is still defended today by North Korean troops on one side and South Korean and American troops on the other
Newly elected US president Dwight Eisenhower fulfilled a campaign promise by going to Korea to find out what could be done to end the conflict
No peace treaty has been signed to date

Results of the war

The Korean War was the first armed confrontation of the Cold War, and it set a model for many later conflicts
It created the idea of a limited war, where the two superpowers would/could fight without using nuclear weapons
It also expanded the Cold War, which to that point had mostly been concerned with Europe
The total number of deaths, including all civilians and military soldiers from UN Nations and China, was about 2,000,000
US had 54,000 deaths

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