What were the Causes and the Effects of the Korean War?
What was the Korean War
- 25th of June 1950 War started
- Started with 90,000 North Korean soldiers who launched an invasion of South Korea
- Occurred during a debate over the future of US foreign policy
- Many people in Washington wanted a rearmament programme to confront Communism on a global level as portrayed in NSC-68
- Truman realised that if he failed to take action that the credibility of US policy of containment would be undermined
- US immediately sent aid to South Korea and called on the UN to sanction military action against North Korea
- 27th June 1950 A resolution sanctioning against North Korea was passed by the UN
- USSR was boycotting the Security Control after the US deciding not to recognise Communist China and had no say in the matter
- 1st July 1950 Troops from the US + 15 other nations arrived - Led by UN Commander, American General Douglas MacArthur
- Got the US to accept the recommendations in document NCS-68 - Raise the military budget
- The Cold War was now a global war and the USA wanted to confront Communism in Europe as well as Asia
The Korean War - What Happened?
STAGE ONE - NORTH KOREAN INVASION
STAGE TWO - UN COUNTER-ATTACK
STAGE THREE - CHINESE COUNTER-ATTACK
STAGE FOUR - STALEMATE
- Started as a war of movement - Dramatic changed in the first year
- Followed by a stalemate that lasted until 1953
STAGE ONE - NORTH KOREAN INVASION
- North Korea captured almost all of the entire Korean peninsula apart from Pusan (small pocket of land in the South-East)
STAGE TWO - UN COUNTER-ATTACK
- MacArthur led the UN forces to lead an assault on Inchon - Wanted to split the North Korean forces in half
- Recaptured Seoul within a month and pushed the North Koreans back to the 38th parallel
- US decided on a policy of 'rollback' - Aimed to cross into North Korean territory to reunite Korea
- October Pyongyang was captured
STAGE THREE - CHINESE COUNTER-ATTACK
- Chinese warned MacArthur and he decided to push on the border with China at Yalu River anyways
- 27th November 1950 Over 200,000 Chinese and 150,000 North Korean troops and pushed the UN forces into retreat
- December 1950 Pyongyang and all of North Korea was recaptured - UN forces suffered heavy casualties
STAGE FOUR - STALEMATE
- War descended into stalemate along the 38th parallel
- Truman decided to go back to the policy of 'containment' - MacArthur disagreed and threatened to use atomic bombs against China
- MacArthur was fired by Truman
- 1951 Peace talks began
- 1953 Peace talks continues and an armistice was signed at Panmunjom in July
Causes of the Korean War
ONE - FAILURE TO UNITE KOREA AFTER WORLD WAR TWO
TWO - THE ROLE OF THE USA
THREE - THE ROLE OF KIM IL SUNG
FOUR - THE ROLE OF STALIN
FIVE - THE ROLE OF MAO ZEDONG
ONE - FAILURE TO UNITE KOREA AFTER WORLD WAR TWO
- 1945 Agreed by the superpowers to temporarily divide Korea and take joint responsibility for repatriating Japanese forces
- 38th Parallel was used as a dividing line with the USSR who occupied the north and the USA who occupied the south
- December 1945 Council of Foreign Ministers' Moscow Conference the USA and the USSR agreed to create a provisional government in Korea that would lead to independence
- Independence was never achieved and the Cold War developed superpowers who became less willing to co-operate
- Separate governments emerged on both sides - The South (US) appointed Syngman Rhee an anti-Communist
- In the North the USSR supported a Communist faction led by Kim Il Sung
- Both fought the Japanese and wanted to end the division of Korea - Had different ideologies
- America persuaded the UN to establish a commission to supervise the Korean elections - Refused entry to the North but observed a separate election in the South in May 1948
- Republic of Korea (ROK) was set-up in the South and led by Synghman Rhee - Undemocratic and anti-Communist but recognised as legitimate by the UN general Assembly
- September 1948 the North founded the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) - Founded by Kim Il Sung, recognised as a Communist Bloc
- The failure of forming a unified Korean government the permanent division of Korea formed
- Each side claimed to represent Korea and that each leader wanted to unify Korea
TWO - THE ROLE OF THE USA
- Superpowers both began to withdraw troops
- 1948 Soviet troops left the North
- Mid-1949 All US troops were gone
- January 1950 Dean Acheson's 'perimeter' speech declared that the US wouldn't commit troops in mainland Asia
- The withdrawal of troops left a power vacuum in Korea - Could develop hostiles between the two Koreas'
- US withdrawal presented Kim Il Sung with an opportunity
THREE - THE ROLE OF KIM IL SUNG
- Both Kim Il Sung and Synghman Rhee wanted to reunify Korea on their own terms - Neither side could unify Korea on their own
- Kim Il Sung tried to persuade Stalin into supporting an attack on the South
- Stalin wasn't to blame for the war although his support for Kim Il Sung significant when it came to the North making decisions
FOUR - THE ROLE OF STALIN
- 1950 Stalin eventually began to support the plans for a war - More hopeful of winning
- Communist victory in China and the development of the USSR's first atomic bomb persuaded Stalin to act
- The development of an anti-Communist Japan threatened Stalin's control within the region
- Successful invasion of South Korean presented Stalin with the opportunity to spread his influence
FIVE - THE ROLE OF MAO ZEDONG
- Kim Il Sung had the support of China - Mao was initially skeptical about the success of the invasion
- Kim persuaded Mao that Stalin was more enthusiastic - Mao was keen to get support from Stalin and planned his attack on Taiwan
- Mao ultimately gave his approval to invade the South
Effects of the Korean War
EFFECTS ON THE USA
EFFECTS ON KOREA
EFFECTS ON CHINA
EFFECTS ON THE USSR
EFFECTS ON SOUTH-EAST ASIA
EFFECTS ON THE COLD WAR
EFFECTS ON THE USA
- Korean War heightened US fears of further Soviet aggression
- NSC-68 recommendations to tripe the budget were approved
- US forces were strengthened with NATO with new members Greece, Turkey and eventually West Germany
- War served as a Catalyst to form new policies / accept them
- 1952 US and Japan signed the Treaty of San Francisco - Allowed the US to build military bases in Japan and the US to rebuild the Japanese economy
- US increased support for Chiang Kai-Shek in Taiwan and continued to isolate China
- 1954 South-East Asia Treaty Organisation (SEATO) was formed - Anti-Communist containment bloc, included Thailand, the Philippines, Pakistan, USA, UK, France, Australia and New Zealand
EFFECTS ON KOREA
- 300,000+ civilians had lost their lives, property damage was also a major consequence
- The Peninsula was permanently divided - No hope of reunification
- 38th Parallel became the new heavily defeated frontier of the Cold War
- North Korea remained under Communist rule, South Korea formed into a successful democratic and capitalist nation
EFFECTS ON CHINA
- China's reputation few after the war for successfully pushing back US forces - Helped to consolidate the Communist revolution in China
- Stalin's reluctance to help Mao led to division between the two powers - China became more independent
- Mao's aim to unite with Taiwan was now harder because the US increased their support for Chiang Kai-Shek
EFFECTS ON THE USSR
- USSR wasn't directly involved with the Korean War, gave tacit consent to North Korea
- The war damaged Soviet interests
- USA's decision to triple military spending and rearm Western Germany, maintain troops in Europe and aim to contain Communism in Asia - USSR was being driven into a global conflict
- Stretch Soviet commitments throughout the world - Economical issues
EFFECTS ON SOUTH-EAST ASIA
- Korean War was an attempt by the US to contain Communism in Asia - Asia was now a battleground for the Cold War
- Nationalist countries such as, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia and Philippines wanted independence from their Colonial powers - Some movements were Communist and relied on the support of the USSR or China
- US policies confused national Communist groups allied with Moscow - Lead to the US involvement in the Vietnam War
EFFECTS ON THE COLD WAR
- Korean War globalised the Cold War
- Increasing militarisation - Both sides increased their military budgets
- The USSR increased the size of the Red Army from 2.8 million to 5.8 million
Activities 5 -8
The Cold War - Rogers, Thomas
Activity Five - What Similarities and what Differences are there in which Germany and Korea each became Divided into Two Separate Countries?
Similarities
Differences
Similarities
- Both the USSR and the US have one side of the country
- USSR set up a Communist government - Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK
- US helped set up a Democratic government - Republic of Korea (ROK)
- Both were trying to spread their own influence across the world
Differences
- Split into two sections not four
- No added influence of the UK and France
- US didn't intend to have troops in North Korea
Activity Six (one) - John Lewis Suggests that the Korean War could be Called 'A Comedy of Errors.' Discuss what Misconception Guided the thinking of Truman, Stalin, and Mao during the Planning and course of the Korean War
TRUMAN
STALIN
MAO
Activity Six (two) - Use the Initial Crisis Period that Followed the North Korean Invasion of the South as a Case Study in Crisis. Instead of using the Course of the war itself, Focus on the Crisis that led to the US-led UN Force Intervening.
North Korea jumped straight into the war, they didn't ease into it. From the very beginning they initially aimed to gain territory and defeat the South. Immediately the South fought back under the control of General MacArthur who led UN forces. They landed in Inchon so they could pass the Korean troops and cut them off. Within a month they had regained Seoul and pushed the North Koreans back to the 38th parallel.
TRUMAN
- Soviet 'sphere of influence' was spreading to Asia because of Stalin
STALIN
- Stalin would gain more territorial land to control to spread his own influence through Asia
MAO
- If the Chinese continued to help fight in this war then Russia would reward them and they would help each other to improve their superpower status
Activity Six (two) - Use the Initial Crisis Period that Followed the North Korean Invasion of the South as a Case Study in Crisis. Instead of using the Course of the war itself, Focus on the Crisis that led to the US-led UN Force Intervening.
North Korea jumped straight into the war, they didn't ease into it. From the very beginning they initially aimed to gain territory and defeat the South. Immediately the South fought back under the control of General MacArthur who led UN forces. They landed in Inchon so they could pass the Korean troops and cut them off. Within a month they had regained Seoul and pushed the North Koreans back to the 38th parallel.
Activity Seven (one) - What is it meant by referring 'Roundish One?'
The 'Roundish One', conveys the whole world and Marshall can get a more global view of foreign policy across the world.
Activity Seven (two) - What is the Problem with using only a 'Squarish One?'
The problem with the 'Squarish One', is that MacArthur is only looking at Asia, when the Cold War was now forming into a global phenomenon. Therefore, they needed to look at Communism on the scale of the whole world not just a section of it.
The 'Roundish One', conveys the whole world and Marshall can get a more global view of foreign policy across the world.
Activity Seven (two) - What is the Problem with using only a 'Squarish One?'
The problem with the 'Squarish One', is that MacArthur is only looking at Asia, when the Cold War was now forming into a global phenomenon. Therefore, they needed to look at Communism on the scale of the whole world not just a section of it.
Activity Eight - Consider and Discuss how the Korean War can be seen as a Civil War
The Korean War can be seen as a civil war because Korea was divided into two where the North wanted Communism and the South wanted a democratic society, therefore, two sides of one country were fighting to rule the country as a whole.
The Korean War can be seen as a civil war because Korea was divided into two where the North wanted Communism and the South wanted a democratic society, therefore, two sides of one country were fighting to rule the country as a whole.