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Unit 2: Korean War -- To what extent was the outbreak of the KW due to CW…
Unit 2: Korean War -- To what extent was the outbreak of the KW due to CW tensions/Was the KW a civil war or a proxy war?
Background:
- temporary division of 2 koreas along the 38th parallel post WW2
- Potsdam Agreement: US administer South and USSR administer North with little intervention such that K would be independent after the divide
- July 1948: establishment of ROK (Syngman Rhee) and DPRK (Kim Il Sung)
- Border skirmishes since 1948
Koreas
North Korea
Kim Il Sung:
- Communist
- Intensely nationalist: wanted reunification under the comm. rule
Why did he invade SK in June 1950?
- In-principle support form Stalin and Mao
- Inspire popular rebellion against Rhee in SK
- for SK to think that Rhee was weak so that they will turn to support comm.
South Korea
Syngman Rhee:
- anti-communist
- intensely nationalist: wanted reunification under 'democratic' autocratic rule (willing to use force to achieve aims which was against US ideology)
- increasingly unpopular within SK
Truman-Rhee
- Uneasy support of Rhee
- although he was pro-american and could be a pawn in the game against comm. explansion, he wanted to rule SK as he pleased (against US)
- refusal to provide arms to SK in fear that Rhee might attack NK (NK became military superior to SK)
- increasingly uneasy about comm. expansion
- comm. bloc getting strong and increased anti-comm. views in the homefront (USSR's increased confidence = US's increasing worries)
- Berlin Blockade, Soviet atomic bomb, Communist China, McCarthyism etc
Superpowers
US Mixed Signals:
- 12 Jan 1950: Secretary of State Dean Acheson failed to specify korea as one of the countries with the US defence perimeter that would get US support if attacked
-- NK thought that US would not support SK military
-- Kim Il Sung used it to convince Stalin
- no evidence to show that the Soviets and Chinese knew about this, Stalin and Mao had their good reasons to support Kim
why did US enter the war
- to deter soviet expansionism
- communist china, increasing communist states in EE
- domestic concerns
- mccarthyism, if he doesnt oppose communist threat people in US would be unsupportive of him
- to prove UN's ability and not repeat mistake of LON
Soviet support for Kim
- 1949: Kim approached Stalin for support for an attack on SK -- Stalin refused, actively convinced Mao to approve his plans
- 1950: active and repeated persuasion managed to sway Stalin. Stalin agreed with a few conditions
- quick victory over SK
- no American intervention
- no escalation into world war
*Why did Stalin change his mind?
- US defence perimeter speech -- SK was not "protected" of US, NK could win faster without US intervention
- comm. bloc getting stronger -- increased confidence of helping NK to reunify (comm. China, atomic bomb)
Chinese support for Kim
- concerned about American influence in Korea (right beside their industrial heartland Manchuria)
- enthusiastic to send troops to the border
Course of War
25 June 1960: Outbreak of War -- UNSC requested that NK withdraw
27 June: UN declared to oppose NK as aggressor, Truman committed US forces to support UN
Oct 1950: Truman gave the authorisation for UN forces to cross the 38th parallel into NKOriginal war aim: expel NK forces from SKCONTAINMENT TO ROLLBACK
- influenced by heady sense of optimism after battle of incheon in the same month (they won) -- think that they can do more against communist aggression, want to eradicate communism in korea and prevent any further dispute
- lured by the prospect of unifying Korea under Syngman Rhee
- Desire to take revenge against NK aggressor
- Need to stand up against comm.
Chinese intervention
late Oct 1950: Chinese forces joined NK forces across the Yalu River in large numbers
- CCP victory in China (1949) -- need to stand its ground and show support for fellow comm. Nk
- security concerns (proximity to NK, US's rollback stand and their support for KMT and taiwan -- prove themselves against US)
US's reversion to original war aims: fight a limited war in Korea, restore 38th parallel as the border
July 1951 - July 1953: Stalemate
End of KW
- Deep war weariness on all fronts by 1953
- change in US and USSR leadership gave leaders a chance to stop the war
- Armistice agreement signed on 27 July 1953
Impact of War
Superpowers
- Increased arms race: necessitated the rise in US defence production since they could not successfully rollback comm. -- also led to increased stress for USSR to meet the challenge (weak point)
- first time CW was fought outside europe using third parties as substitute for direct confrontation between US and USSR
- (+) prevented superpowers from engaging in an all-out war with one another, or use nuclear weapons
- US: KW was seen as the success of policy of containment: did not repeat their "loss" of China
Koreas:
- large number of casualties
- NK: never recovered from the war, remained a low output cultural society
- SK: democratic and stable economy due to US's aid
- confirmed division of NK and SK
World Order:
- expansion and militarisation of NATO: promised to consult each other in the case of armed attack but also increased tension in Europe
- Increased US involvement in Asia: military and economic assistance, more military bases (can be see in VW)
- UN capability undermined: seen as a capitalist tool, major powers like China and USSR are unwilling to cooperate
- China-Soviet split: China's growing reputation from successfully saving NK VS failure of USSR to support communist war efforts