1. Korea and Vietnam Fights between East and West

2. Korean War • After WWII, Korea divided along 38th Parallel • North: Communist • South: Democratic • Soviets arm North Korea, encourage them to take over South Korea • South Korea asks for UN Assistance

4. Korean War • UN Security Council votes to send forces • 15 nations go, including the USA • US General Douglas MacArthur leads the forces • North Korea nearly takes over the whole Korean Peninsula by September, 1950 • UN forces arrived, and by November, 1950, UN forces are close to the Korea-Chinese border • China sends 300,000 troops at this point • Fight will continue for two more years

5. Korean War Ends • Truce signed in July 1953. • No peace treaty is actually ever signed • The border remains the 38th Parallel • De-Militarized Zone (DMZ) • North Korea remains communist, struggles economically • South Korea stays democratic, supported by the USA and thrives

7. Vietnam: Background • Vietnam is a French Colony prior to WWII • Ho Chi Minh, inspired by communism, wants freedom for Vietnam • Japan occupies during WWII • After war, France refuses to grant independence, Minh leads people in revolt, wins • Vietnam divided 1954 • North, lead by Ho Chi Minh, communist • South, US-French Backed dictator.

9. Vietnam War • Pro-communist fighters threaten South • 1964, U.S. enters the conflict, sending several hundred thousand troops • Two problems: • Fighting a guerrilla war in an unfamiliar jungle location • Supporting a government in the South that is extremely unpopular • Did not have success on the ground, so US starts bombing the jungle, hoping to hit enemy hideouts • Makes the Americans and the South even more unpopular

10. War in Vietnam Ends • The war was EXTREMELY unpopular at home • Mass protests, especially among university students • Kent State shootings, 1968 • President Nixon announces that US troops will begin withdrawl in 1969 • Last US troops leave in 1973 • 58,000 US Dead • North Vietnam conquers South in 1975