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The Korean War Part II: China and a Stalemate. The Invasion of N. Korea. The UN troops were successful in driving the N. Koreans back past the 38th parallel :
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The Invasion of N. Korea • The UN troops were successful in driving the N. Koreans back past the 38th parallel: • Am.’s goal of saving S. Korea’s gov. had been achieved and Am. turned to another goal - uniting all of Korea under the gov. of Syngman Rhee. • This marked a crucial moment in Am. foreign policy, when the Am. leaders decided to go beyond simply “containing” perceived communist threats to actual rollback.
The Invasion of N. Korea • Oct. 1950: U.N. forces cross the 38th parallel into N. Korea. • U.S. forces made amphibious landings at Wonsan and Iwon, which had already been captured by S. Korean forces advancing by land. • Oct. 29: The rest of the U.S. Army, along with the S. Koreans, drove up the W. side of Korea and captured Pyongyang. • By the end of Oct., the N. Korean Army was rapidly disintegrating, and the U.N. took 135,000 prisoners.
The Invasion of N. Korea • The U.N. offensive greatly concerned the Chinese, who worried that the U.N. forces would not stop at the Yalu River, the border b/w N. Korea and China, and extend their rollback policy into China. • Many in the W., including Gen. MacArthur, thought that spreading the war to China would be necessary. • However, Truman and the other leaders disagreed, and MacArthur was ordered to be very cautious when approaching the Chinese border. Eventually, MacArthur disregarded these concerns, arguing that since the N. Korean troops were being supplied by bases in China, those supply depots should be bombed. • However, except on some rare occasions, U.N. bombers remained out of Manchuria during the war.
China Enters the War • China warned Am. leaders through neutral diplomats that it would intervene in the war to protect its national security. • However, these threats were not taken seriously by Truman and MacArthur – “the Chinese have no air force; hence if the Chinese tried to get down to Pyongyang, there would be the greatest slaughter.” • MacArthur assumed that Chinese wished to avoid heavy casualties, however, MacArthur was going to be proved wrong. • Oct. 8, 1950: The day after Am. troops crossed the 38th parallel, Mao Zedong issued the order to assemble the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army, have them move to the Yalu River, and be ready to cross.
China Enters the War • Mao appealed to the S.U. for aid and viewed intervention as a defensive move: • “If we allow the U.S. to occupy all of Korea… we must be prepared for the U.S. to declare… war with China.” • Despite Mao’s appeal to his ally, Stalin was reluctant to help: the S.U. provided only minimal air support due to fear of a nuclear war with Am. • Am. knew of Soviet involvement, but it was kept quiet so as to not spark a nuclear war. www.chine-informations.com/langues/en/?/mods/...
China vs. the U.S. • Oct. 25, 1950: The Chinese make contact with Am. troops - 270,000 PVA troops under the command of General Peng Dehuai. • The contact surprised of the U.N., they had disregarded evidence of such a massive force. However, after these initial engagements, the Chinese forces pulled back into the mountains. • U.N. leaders saw the withdrawal as a sign of weakness and greatly underestimated the Chinese fighting capability. The U.N. forces thus continued their advance to the Yalu River, ignoring stern warnings from the Chinese.
China vs. the U.S. • In late Nov., the Chinese struck in the west, along the Chongchon River, and completely overran several S. Korean divisions and successfully landed a heavy blow to the flank of the remaining U.N. forces. • The ensuing defeat of the U.S. 8th Army resulted in the longest retreat of any American military unit in history. • In the E., at the Battle of Chosin Reservoir, a 30,000 man unit from the U.S. 7th Infantry Division and a unit of Marines were also unprepared for the Chinese tactics and were soon surrounded, though they eventually managed to escape the encirclement, albeit with over 15,000 casualties. • The U.S. forces in NE Korea, who had rushed forward with great speed only a few months earlier, were forced to race southwards with even greater speed.
1951 • Jan. 1951: Chinese and N. Korean forces launch their 3rd offensive driving the UN forces further S. • Jan. 4: Seoul is abandoned and was captured by the communist forces. • The situation was becoming so grim that MacArthur mentioned the use of atomic weapons against China, much to the alarm of Am.’s allies. • Despite China’s success, they were not able to advance S. of Seoul because they had reached the end of their supply line. • In late Jan., finding the lines in front of his forces deserted, Lt.-Gen. Matthew Ridgway organized Operation Roundup in order to recapture lost territory; by Feb. some territory had been reclaimed.
1951 • Mid-Feb: The Chinese strike back with their Fourth Phase Offensive but they were unsuccessful. • Late Feb: Operation Killer – U.S. has taken back more land. • March 7: The 8th Army pushed forward again, in Operation Ripper, and on March 14 they expelled the N. Korean and Chinese troops from Seoul, the 4th time in a year the city had changed hands. • April 11: Truman fires MacArthur for insubordination; Ridgway is now the supreme commander of the UN forces. • April-May: Fighting continues b/w the UN and the Chinese/N. Korean forces. • By July, the UN forces had reached the 38th parallel again but voted to go no further – the stalemate begins.
Stalemate: July 1951 - July 1953 • The rest of the war involved little territory change, large-scale bombing of the N. and its pop., and lengthy peace negotiations, which began on July 10, 1951, at Kaesong. • Even during the peace negotiations, combat cont.: • For the S. Korean and allied forces, the goal was to recapture all of S. Korea before an agreement was reached in order to avoid loss of any territory. • The Chinese and N. Koreans attempted similar operations, and later in the war they undertook operations designed to test the resolve of the U.N. to continue the conflict.
Stalemate: July 1951 - July 1953 • Peace talks continued for the next 2 years with little success: • A major issue of the negotiations was repatriation of POWs. • Nov. 29, 1952: U.S. President-elect Dwight D. Eisenhower fulfilled a campaign promise by going to Korea to find out what could be done to end the conflict: • With the U.N.’s acceptance of India’s proposal for a Korean armistice, a cease-fire was est. on July 27, 1953, by which time the front line was back around the proximity of the 38th parallel, and so a demilitarized zone (DMZ) was est. around it; it is presently defended by N. Korean troops on one side and S. Korean and Am. troops on the other.
South Korea:58,127 combat deaths; 175,743 wounded; 80,000 MIA or POW United States:36,516 dead (including 10,395 non-combat); 92,134 wounded; 8,176 MIA7,245 POW United Kingdom:1,109 dead; 2,674 wounded; 1,060 MIA or POW Turkey:721 dead; 2,111 wounded; 168 MIA216 POW Canada516 dead; 1042 wounded Australia339 dead; 1200 wounded France:300 KIA or MIA; Total: Over 474,000 North Korea:215,000 dead; 303,000 wounded,120,000 MIA or POW China(Chinese estimate):114,000 killed in combat; 34,000 non-combat deaths; 380,000 wounded21,400 POW[13] (US estimate):[8]400,000+ dead; 486,000 wounded; 21,000 POW Soviet Union:315 dead Total: 1,190,000-1,577,000+ Civilians killed/wounded (total Koreans) = Millions The Aftermath of Korea
The Aftermath of Korea • The Korean War was the first armed confrontation of the Cold War and set the standard for many later conflicts. • It created the idea of a limited war, where the two superpowers would fight in another country, forcing the people in that nation to suffer the bulk of the destruction and death involved in a war between such large nations. • The superpowers avoided descending into an all-out war with one another, as well as the mutual use of nuclear weapons. It also expanded the Cold War, which to that point had mostly been concerned with Europe. • The war eventually led to a strengthening of alliances in the Western bloc and the splitting of Communist China from the Soviet bloc.
The Aftermath of Korea • The Korean War damaged both Koreas heavily: • Although S. Korea stagnated economically in the decade following the war, it was later able to modernize and industrialize. • In contrast, the N. Korean econ. recovered quickly after the war and until around 1975 surpassed that of S. Korea. However, N. Korea's econ. eventually slowed. • Today, the N. Korean econ. is virtually nonexistent while the S. Korean econ. is expanding. • The CIA World Factbook est. N. Korea's GDP to be $40 billion, which is a mere 3.34% of S. Korea's $1.196 trillion GDP. • The N.'s per capita income is $1,800, which is 7.35% of S. Korea's $24,500 per capita income.
The Aftermath of Korea • A heavily guarded demilitarized zone (DMZ) on the 38th Parallel continues to divide the peninsula today. • Anti-Communist and anti-North Korea sentiment still remains in S. Korea today, and most S. Koreans are against the North Korean gov. • However, a "Sunshine Policy" is used by the controlling party, the Uri Party. • The Uri Party and President Roh, the current S. Korean president, have often disagreed with the U.S. in talks about N. Korea. • The Grand National Party (GNP), the Uri Party's main opposing party, maintains an anti-North Korea policy today.
The Aftermath of Korea • In the U.S., the Korean War has not received much attention as WW II or the Vietnam War had, so it is sometimes called the Forgotten War. • According to a September 7, 2007 NPR report, President Bush stated that it is his administration's position that a formal peace treaty with N. Korea was possible only when the north abandoned its nuclear weapons programs. • At the 2nd Inter-Korean Summit in October 2007, S, Korean President Roh Moo-hyun and N. Korean leader Kim Jong-Il signed a joint declaration calling for international talks towards a peace treaty formally ending the war.
