Conflict and Tension between East and West - Significance of events in Asia

Question 1

what did the war do for the two main political parties in China?

Answer 1

• the Second World War had left China devastated but it had also brought an alliance between Chinese Communists and nationalists, who had spent the pre-war years fighting for control of the country

Question 2

what happened to the alliance in china when the second world war ended?

Answer 2

• the alliance also ended and by 1946, a civil war had restarted
• by 1949, the communists, under the leadership of Mao Tse-tung had gained the upper hand

Question 3

what is declared on the 1st of October and what happens to the Chinese Nationalists?

Answer 3

• On 1st October, Mao declared the establishment of the People’s republic of China (PRC) and the nationalists under Chiang Kai-shek, retreated to the island of Taiwan

Question 4

how does the West react to the Chinese revolution?

Answer 4

• China’s revolution caused serious concern in Washington and other Western capitals because it meant that the most highly populated country in the world had fallen communism
• The US government believed that China’s new regime was a gain for Stalin

Question 5

who was Mao Tse-tung?

Answer 5

• Mao Tse tung was a key figure in the fight against the nationalist government; when the communists took power in 1949 he emerged as the country’s powerful new leader
• he became interested in the ideas of Marx and Lenin and was a founding member of the Communist Party of China

Question 6

what did the USSR recognise that none of the world did?

Answer 6

the communist government of the PRC in 1949

Question 7

what kind of relationship did Mao and Stalin have?

Answer 7

• Mao looked to the USSR to help develop a communist country and to protect China from any American influence
• Mao’s supporters were peasant farmers, whereas the Russian revolution was led by urban factory workers
• After Stalin’s death, the Chinese- Soviet relationship began to break down

Question 8

what treaty did China and USSR sign in 1950?

Answer 8

• the Treaty of Friendship
• 8000 Chinese students were allowed to travel to the USSR to study technology and science
• $300 million of aid would be provided to China - of this, 95% would need to be repaid + interest was very high
  -20,000 Soviet experts were sent to help the development of China
  -> however the advice was often questionable and seemed to benefit the USSR more than the PRC
• China had to give two of its major ports and the right to mine its Xinjiang territory to the USSR

Question 9

what doctrine did the West see China as evidence of the failure of?

Answer 9

The West viewed the communist takeover in mainland China as serious failure of the Truman Doctrine

Question 10

what was the NSC-68?

Answer 10

• A highly secret document, it repeated the commitment to containing communism.
• it was a response to the Chinese revolution

Question 11

describe the background of Korea

Answer 11

• during the second world war, Japan occupied Korea
• after they were defeated by the allies in World War II they pulled out and Soviet troops went into the North and American troops went into the South Korea
• It was agreed that Korea was to be divided at the Potsdam Conference into two separate countries
• In the North, a Communist regime was established led by Kim II Sung - a Soviet-trained politician
• In the South elections were held and an anti-communist government was set up under Syngman Rhee

Question 12

what occurred during the Korean War?

Answer 12

1. there was an initial North success: June - September 1950 - most of south Korea fell. All but a small corner of southeast Korea was under communist control. The south asked the UN for help - they did
2. The NKPA are driven back: September-October 1950- the North was driven back to China and their resistance collapsed
3. China intervenes: November 1950 - January 1951 - China warned UN troops not to approach the Yalu river. MacArthur disobeyed Truman’s order and did so. Nov 1950 - China sent 200,000 ‘volunteers’ to help North Korea. The South were pushed back beyond the 38th parallel
4. Stalemate: June 1951- 1953 - The USA pushed the Chinese back to the 38th parallel
   Peace talks began in June 1951 but fighting continued until 1952 when Truman was replaced by Eisenhower who wanted to end the war. A ceasefire was agreed in 1953

Question 13

how important was the Korean war to superpower relations?

Answer 13

• the dismissal of General MacArthur showed that the USA did not want to risk full military engagement with the Soviets, who now had their own nuclear weapons, and the soviets were equally keen to avoid direct conflict with the Americans

Question 14

define ‘insurgents’

Answer 14

a person fighting against a government or invading force. A rebel or revolutionary

Question 15

define ‘guerrilla warfare’

Answer 15

war fought by small groups of irregular soldiers against typically larger regular forces

Question 16

define ‘indochina’

Answer 16

a peninsula in southeast asia comprising vietnam, cambodia, Laos, Thailand, western Malaysia, and Myanmar

Question 17

what was the history of Indochina?

Answer 17

• France had controlled Indochina prior to WWII
• the Vietnamese were treated like second rate citizens for example, they could’nt vote or join trade unions
• resistance from the vietnamese led by Ho Chi Minh
• September 1940 - region conquered by the Japanese. Japanese surrendered to the USA August 1945

Question 18

what occurred from 1945-1954 involving Vietnam?

Answer 18

• Ho Chi Minh declared Vietnamese independence and united all nationalist groups under his government. He declared the Democratic Republic of Vietnam a communist state
• Minh is supported by communist China. The French had substantial aid from the USA
• By 1952, France had suffered 90,000 casualties
• despite superior weaponry, the Vietnamese used guerrilla tactics and knew the jungle better
• The USA gave $500 million a year to the French war effort, it was costing the French 600 billion francs a year

Question 19

why do the French leave Vietnam?

Answer 19

• 1954: Battle of Dien Bien Phu
• France appealed to the US for help but they were unable to get directly involved
• Dien Bien Phu fell to the Vietnamese on 7th May 1954

Question 20

what was the Geneva settlement?

Answer 20

• July 1954 - USA, USSR, France
• Vietnam would be split in two along the 17th Parallel
• Ho Chi Minh would continue to lead communist republic
• Viet Minh would leave the southern zone
• South Vietnamese leader = Ngo Dinh Diem. Highly corrupt but staunchly anti-communist
• temporary elections scheduled for two years time when country would be reunited

Question 21

who would not sign the Geneva settlement?

Answer 21

• the USA refused to sign the agreements
• Eisenhower could not accept a communist North Vietnam

Question 22

how and why did the USA involve themselves in Vietnam?

Answer 22

• In December 1960, the National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam was established - widely known as the Vietcong
• In 1960, the USA also elected a new president, John F Kennedy. He was fully aware of the growing crisis in Vietnam and saw dealing with it as vital in stopping communism’s spread

Question 23

what action does President Johnson take?

Answer 23

• Kennedy is assassinated in 1963.
• Lyndon Johnson committed the USA to full-scale conflict in Vietnam to prevent the spread of communism

Question 24

how does Johnson progress in 1965?

Answer 24

• On 8th March 1965, 3500 US marines, combat troops rather than advisers, came ashore at Da Nang. America was at war in Vietnam

Question 25

what controversial tactic did the USA use during the war with Vietnam?

Answer 25

• On 7th February 1965, the USA launched Operation rolling thunder.
• This involved extensive bombing raids on military and industrial targets in North Vietnam.
• This lasted until 1972 and the list of targets was soon expanded to involve towns and cities in North and South Vietnam

Question 26

what was agent orange?

Answer 26

• agent orange was a powerful herbicide used by U.S. military force during the Vietnam War to eliminate forest cover and crops for North Vietnamese and Viet Cong troops
• Later proven to cause serious health issues - including cancer, birth defects - among vietnamese people as well as among returning U.S. servicemen and their families

Question 27

what tactic did the Vietcong use?

Answer 27

• highly effective guerrilla warfare.
  -US soldiers lived in constant fear of ambushes and booby traps. They were also ruthless and quite prepared to kill peasants who opposed them or who co-operated with their enemies. Their greatest strength lay in their refusal to give in
• the total of Viet Cong and North Vietnamese dead in the war has been estimated at 1 million

Question 28

what was the TET offensive and how did it change the public opinion?

Answer 28

1968 - communists launched a major offensive
- during the TET New Year holiday, Viet Cong fighters attacked over 100 cities and other military targets
- around 4,500 fighters tied down a much larger US and South Vietnamese force in Saigon for two days
- However also a disaster for the communists - they had hoped the south Vietnamese would rise up and join them - they didnt
- this was a turning point in the war because it raised questions about the war in the USA

Question 29

what actions did the American public take?

Answer 29

• Anti-war protests all over the country
• thousands began to ‘draft dodge’ - refusing to serve in Vietnam when they were called up
• mass demonstration in universities. At the most infamous, at Kent State University in Ohio, the National Guard broke up the demonstration killing four students

Question 30

how did the Vietnam war end?

Answer 30

• After the TET offensive, Johnson concluded that the war could not be won militarily
• his officials began negotiating for peace. A peace conference began in Paris in 1968
• Richard Nixon was elected in 1968
• In Paris 1973, Le Duc Tho, Nixon and South Vietnamese president Thieu signed a peace agreement,
• By 23rd March 1973 the last American forces had left Vietnam. Within two years, however, the peace agreement was meaningless as South Vietnam had fallen to the communists