C8: Case Study of the Korean War (2261 ELECTIVE HISTORY)

CHAPTER 8 CHRONOLOGY OF THE KOREAN WAR 1945: - The Potsdam Conference is held in July and August where the United States and the USSR agree to free Korea from Japanese occupation and to divide Korea at the 38th parallel - The Korean Peninsula is divided along the 38th parallel in August after WWII - The United Nations (UN) is established in October 1948 - The Republic of Korea is established in South Korea in August - The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is established in North Korea in September - Soviet troops leave the Korean Peninsula in December. 1949 - US troops leave the Korean Peninsula in June - South Korea initates border clashes against North Korea, between June and August - China becomes a Communist state in October. 1950 - Dean Acheson gives his “defensive perimeter” speech at the National Press Club in January. - USSR and China sign the Sino-Soviet Treaty of Friendship, Alliance and Mutual Assistance in February. - North Korean troops cross the 38th parallel in June and attack South Korea where they capture Seoul. - The United Nations sends peacekeeping forces in July to help South Korea - UN troops retake Seoul in September - UN forces cross the 38th parallel in October, capturing Pyongyang and approaching the Yalu (Amnok) River (the border between China and North Korea) - China joins North Korean forces in the war in October 1951 - Chinese and North Korean forces cross the 38th parallel in January and capture Seoul - UN forces counterattack and recapture Seoul in March - North and South Korea reach a stalemate in June 1953 - North and South Korea sign an armistice to end the fighting in July.

CAUSES OF THE KOREAN WAR CIVIL WAR: > Kim II Sung (NK) and Syngman Rhee (SK) desired to reunify Korea under their own leadership and ideology. > Division of Korea (1945): - After Japan's defeat in World War II, Korea was liberated from Japanese occupation but quickly divided along the 38th parallel. The North was occupied by Soviet forces, and the South by American forces. This division was supposed to be temporary, but it soon became permanent as both sides established their own governments with different ideologies. Both governments claimed to be the legitimate ruler of the entire Korean Peninsula, leading to rising tensions between the two regions. The North adopted a communist system under Soviet influence, while the South established a capitalist, anti- communist regime under US support. This division led to internal conflicts: - One example is the Jeju Uprising (1948-1949), where thousands of