2.3 - Korea

Question 1

Who controlled the North and who supported?

Answer 1

Kim Il Sung and Soviets and China

Question 2

Who controlled the South and who supported?

Answer 2

Rhee and USA

Question 3

When did the US refer the issue to the UN?

Answer 3

Nov 1947

Question 4

What happened in the South for the 1948 elections?

Answer 4

Rhee won the majority and created Republic of Korea (ROK)

Question 5

What happened in the North for the 1948 elections?

Answer 5

Didn’t allow elections however Sung controlled

Question 6

When did USA withdraw troops and how many?

Answer 6

June 1949 with 45k

Question 7

When did USSR withdraw troops?

Answer 7

December 1948

Question 8

When was the Defensive Perimeter Strategy/Speech?

Answer 8

12 Jan 1950

Question 9

What did the Defensive Perimeter Strategy contain?

Answer 9

• Increased military security in Pacific
• If outside strategy therefore susceptible to Soviet attack
• Did not include Korea

Question 10

When was NSC 68?

Answer 10

April 14th 1950

Question 11

What was NSC 68?

Answer 11

• Stressed urgency to build USA’s political, economic and military power
• Not public

Question 12

What initiated NSC 68?

Answer 12

• China falling to communism
• USSR testing of atomic bomb

Question 13

Arguments for USA causing Korean War

Answer 13

1. Lack of intervention with the PRC in China so North felt they could invade
2. Defensive Perimiter Stratgey (Shifted US thinking to send 1600 artillery, 178 military aircraft and 258 tanks.)

Question 14

When did North invade South?

Answer 14

25th June 1950

Question 15

When was the South pushed back to Pusan?

Answer 15

14th September 1950

Question 16

When did South push North back over 28th Parallel?

Answer 16

September - November 25th 1950

Question 17

What did Mao do in 1950?

Answer 17

Send 300,000 troops

Question 18

What was Stalin’s position October 1950 and how did this affect US policy?

Answer 18

• Still refused to send troops
• Made Truman change policy to detsorying North Korea
• Attempt to weaken communism in Asia

Question 19

What was MacArthur’s reaction to China sending another 200,000 troops?

Answer 19

Suggested the use of atomic weaponry which caused him to be dismissed

Question 20

How many soldiers did the USA provide during the Korean War?

Answer 20

6 million

Question 21

What happened between June 1951-July 1953?

Answer 21

Stalemate and negotiations began
- Neither side mounted any military offensives in this period and the lack of UN action caused Mao and Stalin that there was a genuine desire for a peace treaty

Question 22

Why did Rhee make negotiations difficult?

Answer 22

He had wanted for the US to be more explicitly tied to South Korea by making the US dependent on South Korea as an agent of US containment

Question 23

When did Stalin die?

Answer 23

March 1953

Question 24

When was The Panmunjom Armistice Agreement ?

Answer 24

27th July 1953

Question 25

What was the Panmunjom Armistice Agreement?

Answer 25

• Military demarcation line with a demilitarised zone of 2km on each side of the 38th parallel.
• All military forces withdraw to their countries
• Prisoners of war released

Question 26

Overall impacts of Korean War

Answer 26

• Long term security for North and South
• Long term security of Taiwan
• NSC-68 meant that the US would aid any of these states resisting the USSR and therefore, would act to globalise containment
• Strengthened NATO and led to rearmament of W Germany and the first steps to integration of W Europe.

Question 27

Impact of Korean war on USA

Answer 27

• Strengthened the arguments of the US National Security Council in which communism represented coordinated global threat
• Basis of US foreign policy for his presidency and was continued for the next 20 years
• 300% increase of military expenditure

Question 28

Impact of Korean war on USSR

Answer 28

• Mao consulted with Stalin on all key decisions nd was dependent on the USSR
• War brought USSR and China closer but was also seen as a way to keep the Sino-Soviet alliance together

Question 29

US causes of Korean War

Answer 29

• Defensive Perimeter Speech (Korea vulnerable)
• Sent UN Resolution 83 troops on their behalf
• Resources and military weapons sent in
• US withdrew troops from Korea prior to the outbreak of the conflict due to issues in Europe needing attention (IE Marshall Aid)
• Provoked the Chinese to join in the conflict by positioning a fleet between China and Taiwan.
• NSC68 - April/Sept 1950 but SECRET - tripled defence budget.

Question 30

USSR causes

Answer 30

• Encouraged China to send troops (USSR did not want direct conflict with USA)
• Encouraged Kim Il Sung to strengthen his guerilla forces in the South to undermine the government there
• Committed resources EG 1600 pieces of artillery but not troops
• Stalin did not commit troops at all but aided indirectly as a wish to avoid war with US.

Question 31

North Causes

Answer 31

• 25th June attack
• Double played China and USSR by saying to each that he had the support of the other
• Initiated guerrilla action against South to destabilise Rhee’s regime following election results and division of Korea.
• There were already 200,000 communist supporters in South, well organised guerrilla force in South too, & the USA would not have time to intervene.

Question 32

South Causes

Answer 32

• Nationalist and anti Communist who wanted to reunite Korea
• Would not tolerate communism in any form
• Determined to remove communism from the North
• Defending a border with Manchuria was seen as important to defending the border at the 38th parallel.