Chapter 8: Korean war

Division of Korea into North and South

How was the Korean conflict a civil / internal war?

Existing Tensions between North and South Korea

  • Hostile relations between Kim and Rhee as each felt that he should be the ruler of a unified Korean Peninsula

  • Kim tried to persuade Stalin to support an attempt to reunify Korea but Stalin was not keen to stir up more conflict with US and strain Soviet resources by getting involved in a Korean war

  • Likewise, Rhee was also eager to force the issue of Korean reunification with the United States

  • However, US refused to provide South Korea with large supplies of heavy military weapons and equipment fearing that it may be used to attack North Korea

  • Despite it, Rhee had initiated several border clashes to capture territories in the North

  • For example, in July 1949, South Korean warships attacked North Korea’s military installations near Taedong River, sinking most of North Koreas west coast fleet

  • Fierce fighting broke out frequently around the 38th parallel

  • Other border skirmishes and hundreds of small-scale assaults also occurred across the 38th parallel during the first half of 1950 which resulted in heavy casualties on both sides in some of these encounters

  • Thus. The Korean Peninsula was divided and became a place of great tension

  • Thus, the Korean conflict can be seen as a civil conflict as it was mainly driven by the two Korean leaders, Kim and Rhee, to reunify the country under their respective rule

Disinterest of US and USSR in Korea

  • US has decided that Korea lay outside their ‘defensive perimeter’ in the Asia-Pacific.

  • In a speech by Dean Acheson, US Secretary of State, he emphasized the importance of Japan and Philippines to the US

  • Japan was still under the occupation and rehabilitation of the Allies after WW2, while the Philippines was its former colony

  • He made a clear commitment that US military forces would protect these areas

  • However, the Korean Peninsula was noticeably absent from Acheson’s speech, which suggests the unimportance of Korea to US strategic consideration

  • Likewise, for USSR, Stalin was reluctant to support Kim in conquering South Korea as he did not want to risk direct military confrontation with the US

  • Furthermore, both the US and USSR eventually exited their troops from Korea which indicated that they had no intention of being heavily involved in the matters of Korea

  • Thus, absence of Korea from US strategic plans as well as the reluctance of USSR in supporting any armed invasion by North Korea clearly indicate that the Korean conflict is a civil war

Expansion of the Cold War into Asia

What made the US and USSR change their stand on the Korean conflict? / How did the Korean Conflict turn into a Proxy War

China became a Communist state

  • Chinese civil war was fought between the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) led by Mao Zedong and the Guo Ming Tang (GMD) led by Chiang Kai-shek

  • The CCP was victorious and China became a communist state in Oct 1949

  • US was concerned with the implications of China turning communist (introduction and potential spread of communism in Asia)

  • US pumped US$2 billion in aid to support the GMD Nationalists under Chiang

  • Eventually, the defeated GMD government escaped from China and established themselves on the island of Formosa – Taiwan

  • US became fearful that communism might start spreading throughout Asia – thus, they refused to accept the legitimacy of the CCP government and continued to support the GMD government in Taiwan

  • USSR had supported Mao and the CCP during the Chinese civil war

  • They now have a powerful ally against the US

  • The two communist powers signed the Sino-Soviet Treaty of Friendship, Alliance and Mutual Assistance which sets out various agreements about land and transport in East Asis

  • It also involved a cumulative loan of $300 million from USSR to help China rebuild after years of war

  • Thus, the US was forced to relook their involvement / commitment to Asia / Korea as Communist China signals a clear and present danger of the spread of communism into Asia if it is not contained

USSR’s Atomic Bomb

  • In Aug 1949, USSR successfully detonated its first atomic bomb

  • This signalled nuclear parity with the US – America no longer had the upper hand in the realms of military power / technology

  • This made Stalin more inclined to support Kim’s request to invade South Korea as they no longer fear the military superiority of US

USA’s Response to Communism in Asia

  • US was increasingly anxious over the regional developments (Communist China, USSR’s Atomic Bomb)

  • Further aggravated with US spies reporting that Stalin was attempting to win power in Malaya, Indonesia, Burma, the Philippines and Korea (expansion into Asia)

  • Feared that Communist countries were acting together to spread communism and overrun Asia (worldwide communist expansion)

  • Truman was determined to stop him / spread of communism

  • Therefore, US drew up a secret document, known as National Security Council Paper No. 68 which outlined a more assertive and aggressive US foreign policy to deal with the communist threat

  • US will intervene if a war broke out in Korea

  • Thus, with US perception of Stalin’s intention to expand communism into Asia, it prompted them to adopt a proactive approach to their foreign policy in intervening over any conflict situations in Asia which led to increased US involvement in the Korean conflict


Stalin and Mao’s Shift on Their Position on Korea

  • USSR saw having control and influence over North Korea would give USSR a platform to spread communist ideology as well as counterbalance the US influence in Japan

  • Stalin also gained a powerful ally in China

  • They signed the Sino-Soviet Treaty of Friendship, Alliance and Mutual Assistance in February 1950

  • This ensured Chinese support for North Korea should there be an invasion (of South Korea)

  • Thus, this would mean that the US would have another strong country to contend with should they (US) choose to intervene in the conflict

  • China was also keen to show the world that they are a force to be reckoned with

  • Coupled with the fact that Kim was persistent in asking for support for the invasion of South Korea, and had a large army of well-trained and experienced troops who fought alongside Mao’s communists in the Chinese civil war, and were eager to reunify Korea

  • Therefore, the strategic advantage of Korea, strong ally in China as well as the zeal and eagerness of China and North Korea all serve to move USSR into getting involved in the impending Korean conflict (invasion of South Korea)

Involvement of the United Nations (Proxy vs Civil War)

  • Upon the invasion of South Korea by Norh Korea, US put enormous pressure on the United Nations Security Council to condemn the North Koreans’ actions and to call on them to withdraw their troops

  • United States also obtained UN support to intervene in the Korean War

  • USSR had the power to veto any decision made by the UN; however, it was boycotting the UN to protest the UN’s refusal to grant membership to communist China after the Chinese civil war

  • Thus, USSR was not present to use its veto when the resolutions on the situation in Korea were passed

  • US was the biggest contributor to the UN budget, therefore was in a position to influence the UN decision

  • UN committed to use member forces to drive the North Korean troops out of South Korea

  • Made up of troops from other countries, including Turkey, the Philippines, India and Thailand, they fought alongside thousands of South Korean troops

  • While some countries sent combat troops, others provided medical services or transportation

  • Therefore, the involvement of the United Nations together with troops from the member states in the Korean conflict represents the Korean War as a proxy war, rather than merely a civil war

Impact of the Korean War

Did the Korean War impacted on North and South Korea only?

Impact on North and South Korea

  • Issue on the return of prisoners of war (POWs).

  • Estimated that there were 90000 South Korean POWs, 8000 UN POWs and 100,000 North Korean POWs

  • Many died in captivity

  • Small number of UN and South Korean POWs opted to remain in North Korea or China while a larger proportion of North Korean troops tried to stay in South Korea

  • Suspicion on both sides about whether all POWs had been returned

  • The ‘returned’ POWs were also treated with suspicion as the respective governments feared that they were ‘brainwashed’ and would act against their home country

  • Issue on the border between North and South Korea

  • The communists wanted the division of Korea to be at the 38th parallel

  • The UN and South Korea disagreed; they wanted the division to be along the battle lines established between the two sides

  • Issue of the border was settled with the creation of the DMZ between North and South Korea

  • Both sides agreed to move their troops back about 2 kilometres from the border (known as the Military Demarcation Line) where this zone will be free of troops or any military presence

  • Numerous incidents of shots being exchanged between the two sides but war has not resumed

Impact on US Foreign Policy

(involvement of US and USSR alone vs extension to their respective allies)

  • Also impacted on superpower relations

  • Before the Korean conflict, the Cold War confrontations had been fought through political methods, the media and propaganda

Proxy Wars

  • Korean War was the first case of a proxy war in the Cold War where the superpowers clashed but did not fight each other directly

  • The US put troops in Korea but USSR did not. In addition, the Chinese troops were volunteers and not officially under the command of communist China.

  • Furthermore, the Korean War was an example of how a local dispute could escalate into a superpower conflict.

  • Other proxy wars include US involvement in the Arab-Israeli conflicts of the 1960s and 1970s, the Vietnam War and the involvement of Soviet troops in the Afghanistan war in the 1980s

Creation of Alliances and Escalation of Tensions

  • Korean War greatly affected US policies and attitudes, particularly in Asia

  • Made the US determined to pursue its policy of containment in Asia

  • South Korea, Japan and Taiwan became central to US policy in Asia

  • US stationed troops and significant airpower and naval ships in South Korea and in Japan

  • The US also extended its network of alliances beyond NATO

  • In 1954, it set up a network of anti-communist alliances around the world – the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) in Southeast Asia and the Central Treaty Organization (CENTO) in Central Asia and the Middle East

  • The US provided money, advice and arms to these allies and in return, leaders of these countries suppressed communist influence at home

  • To counter what the US did, USSR set up the Warsaw Treaty Organization, better known as the Warsaw Pact in 1955

  • Warsaw Pact included USSR and all the communist Eastern European countries except Yugoslavia

Increase in Military Power

  • US intensified its military power to enforce its policy of containment by military means, if necessary

  • By 1951, US armed forces had doubled in size compared to the previous year

  • US NATO allies also took a similar approach

  • When the Korean War began, NATO countries only had 14 army divisions and spent approximately 5.5 percent of their Gross Domestic Product on the military (GDP)

  • By the time the Korean War ended, NATO had 15 divisions stationed in West Germany alone, and NATO countries were spending more than 12 percent of their GDP on defence