On November 30, 1950, due to the successive defeats of the United Nations forces led by the United States in the Korean battlefield, the anti-war sentiment of the American people was high, and President Truman held a press conference in order to calm the people's grievances and boost morale.
At the reception, Truman declared that in order to achieve victory in the Korean War, the United States would not hesitate to use any means of war.
This made the reporters present uneasy, and then someone asked, "Does any of the means you are talking about include the use of atomic bombs?" and Truman's reply was that it included all the weapons available to the United States.
Truman's attitude undoubtedly showed that he was ready to use the atomic bomb in his heart, and Truman's increasing appropriations from the Atomic Energy Commission in the following period also proved this very well.
What makes people feel strange, however, is that even though the United Nations forces continued to retreat in the ensuing battles until the end of the Korean War, the United States did not use the atomic bomb, a weapon of mass destruction.
The reason why the United States did not use the atomic bomb in the Korean War was for the following reasons.
First of all, at that time, the Chinese Volunteer Army and the U.S. military were very close to each other, and if they chose to use the atomic bomb, then the U.S. military would inevitably be damaged by the atomic bomb.
Second, once the United States uses the atomic bomb, it will inevitably anger the big brother of the Soviet Union, you must know that China at that time was an important bargaining chip for the Soviet Union to fight the United States, and the Soviet Union could not be indifferent, and the Soviet Union was not at all inferior to the United States in terms of military strength, and even the number of atomic bombs it possessed was much higher than that of the United States.
Of course, it is easy and pleasant to bomb others with an atomic bomb, but if the atomic bomb falls on one's own head, it will not feel so wonderful.
In addition, there is another important reason why the United States does not dare to use the atomic bomb on the Korean battlefield, and that is that many European allies do not agree.
When Truman made a big fuss at a press conference, threatening to use the atomic bomb in order to win the Korean War, it was neither North Korea nor China that could not sit still, but Britain, which was far away in Europe.
The empire, on which the sun never sets, was hit hard in World War II, with its domestic economy on the verge of collapse and a humiliating fall to the throne of the world's most powerful country.
In order to recover its economy as soon as possible, Britain set its sights on Africa, which was not affected by World War II.
To say that Britain and the United States still have some origins, most of the earliest American immigrants came from Britain, from this level of relationship, the United States still has a sense of belonging to Britain, and should take care of one or two in all aspects.
However, for a country like the United States, where interests are paramount, it is obviously impossible to do good deeds without leaving a name, so in order to gain the care of the United States, Britain has to bow its arrogant head and reluctantly become the little brother of the United States.
In the following period, the two most powerful countries in the world, the United States and the Soviet Union, began to compete for world supremacy, while Britain remained firmly on the side of the United States, so its relations with the Soviet Union were not very harmonious.
At this time, Britain's strength was far below that of the Soviet Union, and it was somewhat lacking in confidence to confront it with its own strength; in this case, Britain could only cling to the thigh of the United States, so that the Soviet Union would not dare to target itself too much.
As a result, the relationship between Britain and the United States has become even closer, and it can be said that during this period of time, the United States will say one, Britain will never say two, the United States will point to the east, and Britain will never go west.
In the early days of the Korean War, British policymakers agreed that the Soviet Union was behind the war, and that Britain was very active in countering the Soviet Union and preserving its position in the world.
British politicians are most worried that if North Korea wins the war, the Soviet Union behind it will be confident that it will likely replicate this model in other regions, leading to the expansion of the war and even World War III.
A large-scale war was the last thing Britain wanted, which was working to restore its economy, so the British government decided to do everything to stop North Korea and thus deter the Soviet Union from doing similar things in other parts of the world.
Therefore, Britain not only sent its proud navy, but also sent a large number of land forces to fight in Korea, and the American army ranked first in the battle sequence at that time, and Britain was deservedly second.
At first, the United Nations forces were indeed invincible, and the Korean army was defeated one after another, but under such circumstances, the ambitions of the United States swelled rapidly, and seeing that the North Korean army was so vulnerable in front of the United Nations forces, it simply did nothing and decided to take the opportunity to promote the reunification of Korea.
Soon, MacArthur, the commander-in-chief of the US military, received an order from Washington to lead the US troops across the 38th parallel into North Korea to fight.
Some British politicians believe that if the United Nations forces cross the 38th parallel, it is very likely to provoke China and the Soviet Union, and once the Chinese and Soviet troops enter the Korean battlefield, it will be difficult to predict the victory or defeat of both sides.
In addition, the expansion of the Korean War was not in the interests of the British government, and even if the United Nations forces could win the victory in the end and the entire territory of Korea would be reunified, it would not be enough for Britain to benefit.
However, the British cabinet had a different view, and they felt that the Soviet Union would never dare to openly turn against the United States, and at most it would secretly provide some support to North Korea.
As for China, there is no need to be afraid, not to mention that China has just ended its civil war, its domestic economy is in a depression, and its people are living in misery, so it simply does not have the strength to start another war.
The Taiwan issue alone and the restoration of its lawful seat in the United Nations are enough to make China anxious, and where will it have the energy to take care of the affairs of the DPRK, and China's so-called warning is nothing but a bluff.
Based on this reasoning, the British Cabinet finally decided to follow the steps of the United States and launch an attack on North Korea, but what happened next surprised Western countries, and the Chinese People's Volunteers suddenly appeared on the Korean battlefield.
British politicians could not sit still, and what they feared most was that the US military would focus too much on East Asia and ignore Europe, and if that happened, the European countries would be powerless to resist the Soviet Union.
So Britain made a suggestion to the United States, hoping that the American army would temporarily stop the offensive and not further provoke the Chinese army.
However, the US military, which has already killed madness, does not care about this at all, and the US government believes that even if China enters the war, what can it do, and the army composed of a group of mud legs is far below the US military in terms of equipment and military literacy, and is not an opponent of the US military at all.
MacArthur, commander-in-chief of the United Nations Forces, believed that the Chinese army was absolutely on the verge of collapse in the face of the US military, and threatened to end the Korean War before Christmas.
As a result, this famous American five-star general was soon severely slapped in the face, and after the Chinese People's Volunteers entered the Korean battlefield, they fought bravely and fearlessly to death, and soon caused huge losses to the United Nations troops.
In just two months, the Chinese People's Volunteers launched two large-scale campaigns to drive the United Nations forces back south of the 38th parallel.
At this time, the US government finally could not hold its breath, and in order to save the decline of the Korean battlefield, US President Truman issued a nuclear threat to China at a press conference.
Soon, the news reached the ears of British Prime Minister Attlee, and this crazy move of the United States immediately made Attlee feel restless.
After all, the United States is separated from the Soviet Union by the Pacific Ocean, and it will not be easy for the Soviet Union to carry out a nuclear attack, and Britain, which is on the same continent as the Soviet Union, will certainly become the primary target of the Soviet Union's nuclear retaliation.
So Attlee, who was worried, decided to go to the United States himself and do his best to persuade Truman to give up the idea of using the atomic bomb.
One day in December 1950, when Attlee arrived in the United States, he couldn't wait to meet Truman.
During the talks, Attlee expressed the hope that the United States would not focus all its efforts on Asia, let alone use the atomic bomb first to expand the Korean War, which would cause huge losses to the United States allies in Europe and seriously affect the relations between the United States and European countries.
Truman also said that the United States does not want the Korean War to expand further, and at the same time, it will not abandon Europe because of the war situation in Asia, and Asia and Europe are equally important to the United States.
Truman also said that the European allies, represented by Britain, should always be consistent with the US stand and fully cooperate with the US military action in Korea; of course, the United States also promised not to further expand the Korean War and not to use atomic bombs without the knowledge of its European allies.
On the whole, the meeting between the heads of state of Britain and the United States achieved the results that both sides wanted, and British Prime Minister Attlee finally breathed a sigh of relief after receiving Truman's promise.
MacArthur, who commanded operations in Korea, however, had a different idea; he not only repeatedly called for Truman to use atomic bombs in the Korean War, but also constantly clamored for the further expansion of the Korean War and even the burning of the war into the Chinese mainland.
His actions made British Prime Minister Attlee very uneasy, and he protested to the US government many times.
Attlee once said that if the U.S. military insisted on going its own way, then Britain could only withdraw from the United Nations forces.
In his eyes, these European countries are simply vassals of the United States, and there are no more of them in the United Nations army, and there are no more of them than they are not less, so that the commanders of European countries are more and more dissatisfied with MacArthur.
In fact, US President Truman was also very dissatisfied with MacArthur's actions, knowing that his various behaviors can be regarded as openly confronting the US government, I am afraid that no one will like such subordinates.
In April 1951, Truman ordered the dismissal of MacArthur as commander-in-chief of the United Nations Forces, a move that was warmly endorsed by all European allies, including Britain.
Since then, the Korean battlefield has entered a phase of strategic stalemate, and it is unrealistic for the Chinese volunteers to destroy the United Nations forces in one fell swoop, and even if they can do so, the possibility of the United States using atomic bombs at the end of the road cannot be ruled out.
Therefore, getting out of the Korean battlefield as soon as possible has become something that all forces are willing to see, especially Churchill, who was re-elected as British Prime Minister.
Whenever the negotiations reached an impasse, Britain would take the initiative to stand up and lobby all parties, and it can be said that Britain was a great contributor to the signing of the "Korean Armistice Agreement."
Of course, Britain certainly did not do anything because it could not bear to see the Korean people in deep trouble, or it would not have been as active as it had been at the beginning of the Korean War.
If the further expansion of the Korean War can bring enough benefits to Britain, they absolutely do not mind the scene of the Eight-Nation Alliance's invasion of China being staged again.
After the devastation of the two world wars, the old imperialist power is no longer in its glory, and the United States, which has a history of only a few hundred years, has taken the lead as a latecomer, and Britain can only lick its wounds silently under its protection.
Once the Korean War expands, the United States will no longer have the energy to protect European countries, and it is not impossible for the Soviet Union, which has always been eyeing the enemy, to take advantage of the opportunity.
At that time, no matter what the outcome of the Korean War is, I am afraid that Britain will suffer an unprecedented blow, and this situation is certainly not what British politicians are happy to see, so they are eager to get out of the Korean War, and there is a series of operations after Britain.
Every decision made by politicians in Western countries is based on their own interests, and there is no illusion that any country will spare no effort to help other countries develop and grow.
Only through our own efforts, self-reliance, unremitting self-improvement, and continuous development and expansion of national strength can we make our motherland stand tall among the world's great powers and enable our people to go anywhere in the world with their heads held high and full of self-confidence.