After defending against North Korea, the decision that must be made now is whether or not to move on to the offensive and push past the original border at the 38th parallel. On June 25, 1950 the North Korean army crossed the 38th parallel, and United Nation forces were sent to help repel the attack. American forces got pushed back to the southeast corner on the country, not faring as well as expected. A bold move by General MacArthur turned the war around, the General made the decision to attack from the seafront at Inchon close to the 38th parallel and original border. From here the American army was able to cut off supplies being sent to the North Koreans and eventually pushed them all back to the 38th parallel. The problem the United States, and the decision Truman must make as President, is the choice to cross the border and attempt to take North Korea. In advising President Truman in this decision, uniting Korea under a strong democracy, and proving U.N. authority and strength, are results that only have the minimal risk of Soviet or Chinese intervention, are factors that tip the scale toward the choice to cross the border.
Before World War II Korea was once a unified, independent country, and now by crossing the 38th parallel, the establishment of a unified, independent, democratic government of Korea would be reachable once more. Not only would this decision spread democracy, it would create stability and peace. “Recommendations of the Security Council of 27 June 1950...that Members of the United Nations furnish such assistance to the Republic of Korea as may be necessary to repel the armed attack and restore international peace and security in the area” (United Nations General Assembly, Oct. 1950) This resolution made by...
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...n the world. In regard to the low risk of Soviet and Chinese intervention, it should also be known that due to the desire to not start another World War, and the lack of indications of actual intervention from China, these risks are worth it. If America was to proceed in such a way as to never take risks, than America will never move forward. This war isn’t just about a small peninsula, it is about fighting for Democracy which has been fought for so hard in the past, and is said that it still will be. President Truman, it is now time to actually start fighting against communism. It is advised that crossing the 38th parallel is the best course of action, unifying and stabilizing the Republic of Korea under Democracy, and proving the United Nations as a powerful part of the world, are great assets that are worth the small liability of Soviet and Chinese involvement.
The Korean War changed the face of American Cold War diplomacy forever. In the midst of all the political conflict and speculation worldwide, the nation had to choose between two proposed solutions, each one hoping to ensure that communism didn?t sweep across the globe and destroy American ideals of capitalism and democracy. General Douglas MacArthur takes the pro-active stance and says that, assuming it has the capability, the U.S. should attack communism everywhere. President Harry Truman, on the other hand, believed that containing the Soviet communists from Western Europe was the best and most important course of action, and that eliminating communism in Asia was not a priority.
The United States vows to protect the democratic South Korea. American forces defend South Korea but are almost pushed on the peninsula . Douglas Mccarthur is in charge of the American forces. He stages an impressive counter attack that pushes the North Koreans all the way back to China. This is when China enters the warand pushes American forces back to the 38Th parallel. In 1953 , the war ended In a stalemate. (document C)
The Korean War began when the North Koreans invaded South Korea across the 38th parallel on June 25, 1950. The North Korean forces fought their way to Pusan at the southern edge of the Korean peninsula. With the North Koreans controlling most of the peninsula, General Douglas MacArthur landed an amphibious assault at Inchon on September 15, 1950 and wrested control of South Korea from North Korean forces. After MacArthur’s forces marched to the northern border of Korea, China entered the war. After a major Chinese attack and a major American counter attack, the front of the war had a new stage, the Chosin Reservoir (Henretta, Edwards & Self 768).
The Korean War , although successful in preventing the spread of communism, was one of the first tests of communism in Asia. North Korea was strictly communist while South Korea was democratic. As usual, the United States supported democratic South Korea and the Truman Doctrine was applied to the Korean situation. The North Korean forces crossed the dividing line (38th parallel) and invaded South Korea. Thus, they provoked a war over communism. With the possibility of democratic South Korea falling to the communistic North, the U.S. stepped in and supplied aid mostly through troops. The U.S. then urged the United Nations to support South Korea and fight against the communist North. Once the North Korean forces were defeated at Inchon, they eventually got pushed back to the 38th parallel. However, against President Truman’s word, American General MacArthur decided to keep pushing back the North Korean forces by crossing the dividing line. This caused more trouble because the People’s Republic of China (Communist China) now sent troops to aid the communists against the pro...
President Truman strategy was a “negotiated settlement” “This would end the war, unfortunately North Korea would remain independent.” His tactics were diplomatic, whenever there would be a dispute he would talk it out not causing any trouble or alarming other countries there is a collision of interests.
Throughout the early 1950’s the Korean Peninsula was a location with much civil unrest and violence. For this reason, it is a miracle that the Korean Armistice Agreement was actually mutually agreed upon by North and South Korea. Even with the constant complications, and early opposition surrounding the Korean Armistice Agreement, the aid of Dwight D Eisenhower made this unrealistic attempt of peace a reality.
U.S. participation was centered on America’s foreign policy at the time. Although the War did not break out until June of 1950, several conflicts brewed over the attempt to take over the entire nation under one rule for several years after World War II. The majority of these conflicts took place at the 38th parallel where Korea was split. Decisions influenced by President Harry S. Truman and his doctrine, which was essentially the policy to contain the spread of communism, gave the United Nations an opportunity to prevent global domination through communism (“Teaching with Documents”). The fear of international communism from the powers of the Soviet Union and the People’s Republic of China was the main reason that caused the United States to intervene.
The United States reached the verdict of intervening with Korea from the uprising and constant tension of Cold War politics. The US joined on behalf of South Korea with fearful President Truman warning that if they did not help Korea, other nations would be captured by communist rule (he noted the Soviet Union) and the world would ultimately be threatened by a communist takeover. Communism was the main issue and cause of the international conflict, known as a “limited war”, fighting for limited objectives. North Korea’s communist troops invaded South Korea which was considered the first military action to initiate the Cold War. However the conflict between the nations was not necessarily that of what one land had, it was focused more on being able to call it territory under a certain ruling. The overwhelming risk of communism conquering countries sent nations to help each other, showing the strength and trust in allied nations and what they can achieve with each other’s help.
The United States-Republic of Korea Mutual Defense Treaty purpose was to promise the safely of South Korea and the right for the United States to station a military base there permanently. This was put in place immediately after the Korean War in 1954. When it was first signed, South Korea was a poor, war ravaged country. In the 1960’s, it was estimated that 25% of South Korea’s gross national product was contributed by the United States militarization ...
Later North Korea crossed the 38th parallel and entered South Korea. The United States responded by telling the United Nations to help South Korea. The United Nations did and they pushed North Korea so far back they hit the northern tip of China. China went into the war to protect its borders. At the end of the war, they went back to where they were in the beginning.
In reality, North Korea to this day does not pose a significant military threat, even with limited nuclear capabilities. A constructivist perspective is more able to explain US policy in this instance, because it does not focus on sheer militaristic power. It takes into consideration the state's identity, which drives their interests. The identities of the US and North Korea and the interactions between them drove both nations to the point of acquiring and deterring nuclear use. This conflict began developing in 1994 when North Korea announced its intentions to withdraw from the NPT.
June 25, 1950 marked the day in which fighting between the North Koreans and South Koreans started. 135,000 North Korean troops crossed the border into South Korea while others attacked by sea. In several hours North Korea had successfully detained the South Korean city of Kaesong and in the next couple hours South Korea’s capital, Seoul, was under attack. Things were not looking good for Korea.
On June 25th, 1950 at 4 a.m. the North Korean People’s Army (KPA) attacked across the 38th parallel, implementing a well-developed invasion plan (Lewis p.1). The KPA had a huge number of military men compare to the South Koreans. It had about 135,000 soldiers in 10 divisions, five separate infantry brigades, and one armor brigade with 120 soviet-made-T-34 tanks (Lewis p.1). The Republic of Korea (ROK) was taken by surprise and was not fully equipped with weapons like the KPA (Lewis p.1). So for that matter the ROK could not halt the invasion. But if the South Koreans would have had heavy artillery like the KPA then maybe the KPA’s invasion plan would had been a failure. The United Nations Security Council approved a US sponsored resolution that called fo...
North and South Korea were not very different politically or culturally from one another before mid 1940’s (White, Bradshaw, Dymond, Chacko, Scheidt, 2014, p. 125). However, North Korea started the Korean War when they invaded South Korea in 1950. These two countries, which were once the same, are vastly different in the areas of politics and culture The Koreas’ continue to disagree and not be at peace with each other since the Korean War despite small steps toward progress over the
...h Korea, was a battle that had no real outcome. Lives were lost and buildings were destroyed but there was no resolution that had settled the ongoing tension between both nations. The Battle of Incheon and the Battle of the Kapyong were two significant battles that turned the tide of the war towards one direction, through strategic fighting and with the help of allied countries that involved the United Nations, China and the Soviet Union. Many lives were affected as a result of this battle and it also was a vital advancement for the United Nations as the War allowed them to prosper. Despite the fact that the pressure between South and North Korea had not yet settled, both nations had learnt a great dealt from the War. Coming to understand the war fully, it is vital that we view the events both prior and after the war so that the War itself can be viewed as a whole.