The causes of the Korean War Flashcards
What was the Marshall Plan?
When Marshall and Truman asked Congress for $17 billion to fund the European Recovery Programme - to get the economy of Europe going again
In March 1947, how did President Truman say that the US would come to the aid of any country under threat of communist takeover?
With money and military help
What is the policy of ‘containment’?
US policy of attempting to stop the spread of communism
What was containment also known as?
Truman Doctrine
Why was Stalin suspicious of the Truman Doctrine?
He thought it was a way for the US to control Europe by offering money in return for trade
What was the Domino theory?
The idea that if one nation in a region fell under communist control, others would follow
What had the USSR developed by 1949?
Nuclear weapons
List 5 countries that formed a military alliance called NATO in 1949
Britain USA Canada France Belgium Other European countries
What was the purpose of NATO?
This union was a defence against the USSR and its eastern European allies
What was the Warsaw Pact?
A military alliance in response to the formation of NATO
List 8 countries in the Warsaw Pact
The USSR Albania Bulgaria Czechoslovakia East Germany Hungary Poland Romania
When did Japan take over Korea?
Early 1900s
For long did Korea stay under Japanese control?
Until the end of WW2
When did Japan invade China?
1931
Who was the leader of the Chinese communists?
Mao Tse-tung
When did China become a communist country?
1949
Who took charge of North Korea in 1948?
A Korean communist called Kim Il-sung
What did Kim Il-sung want?
A united, independent Korea
What is the capital of North Korea?
Pyongyang
Who became leader in the US-controlled South Korea?
Syngman Rhee, a capitalist with strong ties with the US
What did Syngman Rhee and Kim Il-sung both have in common?
They were both Korean Nationalists
What is the capital of South Korea?
Seoul
Within the UN, who make’s the decisions relating to peace and security?
The ‘Security Council’
What does veto mean?
The right to block a decision made by other’s
When China became a communist country, what did the Security Council meet to decide on?
Whether the Chinese government should be allowed to join
What did the US do when the Security Council met to decide whether China could join?
They vetoed the decision. The USSR were keen for the communist China to join, but the US still regarded Chiang Kai-shek and his supporters as the true government
What did the USSR do in protest to the US veto as to whether China could join?
They stormed out of the meeting, and refused to attend the security council for the foreseeable future
What 5 states in the Security Council are permanent?
Britain France USA USSR China
What are the terms for a decision being made in the security council?
9 countries must agree, including all 5 permanent states
What did Kim Il-sung believe in 1949?
That South Koreans would welcome an invasion by North Korea. He visited Soviet leader Stalin to ask for his support. However, Stalin didn’t think the timing was right due to US troops still being in South Korea and an invasion by the North might pull Soviet soldiers into a fight with the US troops
Why did Stalin think the situation had changed in 1950 for Korea?
US troops had left Korea
Communists had won the civil war in China
Soviets had developed their own nuclear weapons that were more equal to the US
The Soviets had cracked secret US codes used to communicate with other governments around the world
What did the USSR supply North Korea with?
Tanks, Artillery and Aircraft
Began to train their soldiers
What did Stalin give permission for Kim Il-sung to do in 1950?
Invade South Korea - but made it clear that Soviet troops would not be directly involved
When did North Korean troops invade South Korea?
25th June 1950
What did President Truman declare on the 27th June 1950?
That the US would go to the aid of South Korea
That the UN Security Council must meet quickly to decide how to respond
What was the response of the UN to the invasion of South Korea?
The Security Council met quickly
The US suggested that the UN should assemble an army and help Korea
What did the remaining members (USSR refusing to attend meetings) of the Security Council order?
Ordered North Korea to leave South Korea
Why did the UN agree to put an invasion force together and take military action?
Because North Korea refused to leave South Korea
Who was given the title ‘Commander-in-Chief, UN Command’?
General Douglas MacArthur, from the USA
How many UN member states sent troops to fight?
16, including the USA, Turkey, France, South Africa, Australia, Britain and Ethiopia
What was the US response to the invasion of South Korea?
President Truman was facing elections in November 1950, and wanted to the US public that he was trying to ‘contain’ communism
He ordered US 7th fleet to patrol the seas around North Korea and South Korea, and sent troops and supplies to help South Korea
What was the Soviet response to the invasion of South Korea?
The USSR openly criticised the UN, saying that their list of rules stated that the UN was not permitted to get involved in ‘internal events’
They said that the USA wanted to make Korea part of the ‘American colony’ which could be used as a US military base
The USSR confirmed they would not interfere with events in Korea
