NJC_2021_H2 HY P1_Prelims Ans

NJC Suggested Answers 1a) Compare and contrast the evidence provided in Sources C and D on the outcome of the Korean War. Sources C and D agree that the result of the Korean War was a large amount of US casualties. This is due to their similar contexts. However, Sources C and D differ in identifying who won the Korean War, with C suggesting it is the United Nations/South Korea and D suggesting it is the North Koreans. This is due to their different purposes. 1b) How far do sources A – F agree that America’s involvement in the Korean War was driven primarily by ideological concerns? Sources A, B and F agree with the hypothesis that America’s involvement in the Korean War was driven primarily by ideological concerns while Sources D and E challenge the hypot hesis suggesting that America’s involvement in the Korean War was driven by a desire to achieve to expand their control over the region.. Meanwhile, Source C also challenges the hypothesis, suggesting that America involved herself in the Korean War to primarily to defend Korea. Overall, Sources A, B and F appear to be reliable in showing that American intervention in the Korean War was indeed largely driven by American perception of communism as a monolithic bloc that posed a threat to the American way of life, thus proving that American intervention was due to ideological reasons. 2. “The most important reasons for the problems of the 1970s and 1980s can be found in the Golden Age of Capitalism.” Discuss the validity of this claim with reference to the global economy. The widespread trade liberalisation that underpinned the Golden Age of Capitalism was pivotal in causing the 1973 Oil Shocks as it caused the increasing interconnectedness of the global economy, leaving nations vulnerable to sudden supply shocks. However, the crisis was only triggered when the ME nations decided to impose an embargo on Western nations due to their support for Israel in the Yom Kippur War. It appears that it was Nixon’s decision to devalue the USD in 1973 that ushered in a floating exchange rate system and triggered the end of the Bretton Woods System, leading to the increased currency volatility and instability of the 1970s and 80s. Nonetheless, it was America’s decision to act as the engine of global growth during the GAOC which left her with an unsustainable trade deficit and a huge amount of debt.

Thus, problems from the Golden Age of Capitalism were the foundation for the Crisis Decade, while more recent actions were the trigger for the crises of the 1970s and 80s.

3. “Favourable external circumstances account for the rapid economic growth Taiwan experienced from 1970 – 1990.” How far do you agree with this statement? It appears that Taiwan’s economic miracle between the 1970s and 1990s was by due largely to external cir cumstances as international actors such as Japan invested heavily in Taiwan, enabling Taiwan’s economic growth with their FDI and tech transfer.