31107146
| Question | Answer |
| Describe what happened to Korea after WWII | Korea was divided at the 38th parallel into the Soviet-backed communist North Korea, led by Kim Il Sung, and non-communist, American-backed South Korea under the leadership of Syngman Rhee. Neither leader in Korea had been elected nor did either recognise the legitimacy of the other. |
| What happened in June 1950? | With the support of China and the Soviet Union, North Korea launched an attack on South Korea across the 38th parallel. |
| Explain why the USA became involved in Korea | Domino Theory - Truman was worried that if Korea fell, the next country to fall would be Japan / Containment - In 1947 Truman had announced his Truman Doctrine / Chance - USSR were boycotting the UN / China - had turned communist in 1949 - Truman didn’t want to look ‘soft’ |
| Describe the UN role in Korea | July 1950 The USA appealed to the United Nations for help / the Security Council agreed to send troops / This request was only granted because the Soviet Union was boycotting the Security Council / UN forces, led by the American General Douglas MacArthur, landed in Inchon and quickly pushed the North Koreans back over the 38th parallel / 16 nations sent troops |
| Describe the war by 1951 | The war became a stalemate / The war then took to the skies, where American and Soviet pilots fought for a further two years / Soviet pilots were dressed in Chinese uniforms flying planes with Chinese markings / |
| What happened in the war after Eisenhower was elected President in 1952? | He promised he would go to Korea to see how the war could be ended / In July ‘53 an armistice (a formal agreement made by groups or countries at war to stop fighting) was signed at Panmunjom on the 38th parallel / it left Korea divided as it had been in 1950, and still is today. |
| Explain why China became involved in the war | China feared an American invasion / Mao did not want “rollback” to succeed / North Korea as a communist country provided a buffer zone for China / The Sino-Soviet Treaty with the USSR meant that, as their ally, China was under pressure from Stalin to help Korea. |
| Explain why the USSR became involved in the Korean War | It was part of Soviet ideology to spread communism which is what Kim Il Sung was trying to do / Stalin wanted to see communism expand as long as he did not get involved in a ‘hot war’ with the USA / A successful takeover of South Korea would increase the USSR’s influence in Asia / The USSR was boycotting the UN and therefore could not use their boycott to prevent UN involvement in Korea so they gave support to Sung. |
| Describe Chinese / Soviet involvement in the War | The Chinese People’s Volunteer Army (PVA) sent two million soldiers to Korea / The Soviets It provided material and medical services and most notably MiG-15 fighter jets. They provided diplomatic support, strategic and grand tactical planning, including the planning of the invasion of South Korea. Soviet pilots flew aircraft with Chinese or North Korean markings. They claimed after the war to have shot down over 400 UN aircraft. |
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