There are many theories about the reasons for the outbreak of the Korean War, but recently there is a school of thought that the Korean War was a hole dug by the Soviet Union, on the grounds that the Soviet Union was the beneficiary regardless of the outcome of the war. This is a refreshing view that upends the perception of this period of history. However, this view has a fatal logical loophole, and it also portrays the Soviet Union as a "villain" with complete control, as cliché as the plot of a Hollywood movie. So, what was the real cause of the Korean War? Why did the United States intervene in this war? Is there a hidden war between China and the Soviet Union behind it? Let us find out.
The fuse of the Korean War
In August 1945, World War II ended with the victory of the Allies. In the East Asian theater, Japan surrendered unconditionally, and the eight-year Sino-Japanese War of Resistance finally came to an end. However, the fate of the Korean Peninsula has fallen into a new predicament.
According to the agreement between the Allied forces, the Korean Peninsula was bounded by the 38th parallel and was garrisoned by Soviet and American troops, respectively. This temporary partition was intended to ensure an orderly surrender of Japanese forces in Korea, but it then became the trigger for the division of the Korean nation.
In North Korea, the Workers' Party of Korea, led by the pro-Soviet Kim Il Sung, came to power and established a socialist regime. In South Korea, the pro-American Syngman Rhee is in power and pursues the capitalist road. The two sides have different political views, and the contradictions are intensifying day by day.
In 1948, the Workers' Party of Korea established the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in North Korea, and the following year South Korea proclaimed the Republic of Korea. The two divided regimes began to confront each other for the unification of the Korean Peninsula.
In August 1949, the Soviet Union withdrew its troops from North Korea, and U.S. troops remained in South Korea. With the support of the Soviet Union, the North Korean People's Army was well-armed and combat-ready. South Korea, on the other hand, is dependent on U.S. military assistance and has relatively weak armed forces.
The two sides confronted each other at the 38th parallel, and the situation continued to be tense. On June 25, 1950, a cannon shot rang out, and the Korean War broke out. The North Korean People's Army crossed the 38th parallel and launched a full-scale attack on South Korea. In just three days, the capital Seoul was captured.
In the face of the fierce attack of the North Korean People's Army, the South Korean army was defeated one after another. The Syngman Rhee government had no choice but to ask the United States for help, and the United States immediately decided to send troops to Korea and adopted a resolution of the United Nations Security Council to form a "United Nations Army" with the United States as the main body.
In this way, what was originally a conflict in the Korean Civil War quickly turned into an international war. Why did the United States intervene in this war, and what kind of strategic considerations were hidden behind it? Let us continue to discuss.
The decisive factor in China's involvement
After the outbreak of the Korean War on June 25, 1950, the North Korean People's Army quickly occupied most of South Korea, including Seoul. In the face of the fierce attack of the North Korean People's Army, the South Korean army was defeated one after another. In order to turn the tide of the war, the Syngman Rhee government had to turn to the United States for help.
The United States immediately decided to send troops to North Korea, and adopted a resolution of the UN Security Council to form a "United Nations Army" with the US military as the main body. Just a few months later, MacArthur's United Nations forces landed at Incheon, and the tide of the Korean War was reversed.
The North Korean People's Army (KPA) began to retreat, and the front was forced to move north. In October 1950, the United Nations forces crossed the 38th parallel and entered North Korea. The course of the Korean War poses a serious threat to China.
At that time, China had just emerged from the haze of civil war, and its economic situation was very difficult. If the Korean Peninsula is completely controlled by the US military, it will certainly bring huge security risks to New China.
First of all, China and the DPRK forged a profound revolutionary friendship during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, it has been vigorously supporting the DPRK in many fields such as politics and economy. If North Korea falls, it will have a serious impact on Sino-North Korean relations.
Second, from a geopolitical point of view, if the US military occupies the Korean Peninsula, it will directly threaten the industrial centers of northeastern China. At that time, Northeast China was the most important industrial base of New China, and once it was affected, it would bring a devastating blow to the country's modernization drive.
More importantly, if the Korean Peninsula is controlled by the US military, the US Seventh Fleet may enter the Taiwan Strait and impose a blockade on China. At the same time, it is also possible that Japan will re-become a logistics base for the United States in the Far East, and militarism will return.
Faced with a grim situation from the Northeast, Taiwan, and Vietnam, China had to make a decision to send troops to North Korea to defend its national sovereignty and security.
In October 1950, Mao Zedong and Stalin held talks, and the two sides reached an agreement on the issue of China sending troops to Korea. Stalin promised to provide the Chinese army with a large number of modern weapons and equipment, as well as air support.
After the talks, the Chinese People's Volunteers began to secretly enter Korea and joined forces with the North Korean People's Army on October 25, 1950. After that, the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea officially began.
In November 1950, the People's Volunteers launched the famous Second Campaign, encountering fierce battles with United Nations forces along the Yalu River. With crowd tactics and an indomitable will to fight, the Volunteers finally defeated the UN attack.
In January 1951, the Volunteer Army launched the third campaign, and once again fought a decisive battle with the United Nations forces on the Seoul-38th parallel. After more than two months of hard fighting, the volunteers completely turned the tide of the war and drove the United Nations forces out of Pyongyang.
The role of the USSR in the Korean War
After the outbreak of the Korean War on June 25, 1950, the North Korean People's Army quickly occupied most of South Korea, including Seoul. In the face of the fierce attack of the North Korean People's Army, the South Korean army was defeated one after another. In order to turn the tide of the war, the Syngman Rhee government had to turn to the United States for help.
The United States immediately decided to send troops to North Korea, and adopted a resolution of the UN Security Council to form a "United Nations Army" with the US military as the main body. Just a few months later, MacArthur's United Nations forces landed at Incheon, and the tide of the Korean War was reversed.
The North Korean People's Army (KPA) began to retreat, and the front was forced to move north. In October 1950, the United Nations forces crossed the 38th parallel and entered North Korea. The course of the Korean War posed a serious threat to the Soviet Union.
At that time, the Soviet Union had just emerged from the gloom of World War II, and its economic situation was very difficult. If the Korean Peninsula were to be completely controlled by the US military, it would certainly bring huge security risks to the Soviet Union in the Far East.
First of all, the fall of the Korean Peninsula would directly threaten the Soviet Union's lines of communication and important strategic targets in the Far East. The US military may deploy an air base in Korea, and the supremacy of the sea will be completely locked up, and the Soviet Union will no longer be able to enter the Pacific Ocean.
Secondly, if the US military occupies the Korean Peninsula, Japan is likely to regain its role as a US logistics base in the Far East. Since the end of World War II, the United States has always regarded Japan as an "unsinkable aircraft carrier" and an outpost to contain the Soviet Union in Asia. Once Japanese militarism returned, it would pose a serious threat to the Soviet Union.
Therefore, the Soviet Union decided to acquiesce in and support North Korea's war operations. In April 1950, Kim Il Sung visited the Soviet Union and had long talks with Stalin. Although the Soviet Union did not directly express its support for the Korean War, it promised to provide weapons and other assistance.
After the outbreak of the Korean War, the Soviet Union provided North Korea with a large amount of weapons and equipment, including tanks, artillery and aircraft. But as the tide of the war turned, the attitude of the Soviet Union began to change.
In October 1950, Mao Zedong and Stalin held talks, and the two sides reached an agreement on the issue of China sending troops to Korea. Stalin promised to provide the Chinese army with modern weapons and equipment, as well as air support.
During the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, the Soviet Union provided China with equipment for 64 army divisions and 22 air force divisions, of which 20 divisions were donated free of charge. At the same time, the Soviet Union also deployed the 64th Independent Fighter Air Force on the Sino-Korean border, providing effective air support for the Chinese Volunteers.
However, as the war dragged on, the Soviet Union began to take a more cautious stance. In July 1951, the Soviet Union rejected the North Korean request for additional ground troops. In July 1953, the Korean War finally ended with a ceasefire.
The impact and implications of the Korean War
Although the Korean War was limited in scale, it had a profound impact on the international landscape at the time. It not only exacerbated the contradictions between China, the United States, and the Soviet Union, but also laid the foundation for the subsequent Cold War confrontation.
As far as New China was concerned, the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea was a battle for the founding of the country, which consolidated the status and prestige of New China in the international community. In the baptism of war, the combat effectiveness of the Chinese People's Liberation Army has been greatly tempered, laying a solid foundation for future national defense modernization.
More importantly, the Korean War accelerated China's industrialization. After the ceasefire in 1953, the Soviet Union began to provide large-scale assistance to China, implementing the "156 Project", the largest in history, laying the foundation for China to establish an independent industrial system.
For the United States, the Korean War, despite its setbacks on the battlefield, partially achieved its strategic objectives in the Asia-Pacific region. After the war, the United States deployed a large number of military forces in Japan, turning it into an "unsinkable aircraft carrier" and an outpost to curb the Soviet Union's expansion in Asia.
At the same time, the Korean War also stimulated the development of the US military-industrial complex. During the war, the United States invested as much as $30 billion in the military industry, far more than during World War II. Massive military spending has not only boosted employment, but also scientific and technological progress.
However, the Korean War also took a heavy toll on the United States. The war lasted three years and caused a large number of casualties. The performance of the U.S. military on the battlefield has also been questioned, and it has been called "the longest defeat in American history".
For the USSR, the results of the Korean War were disappointing. Although the Soviet Union supported North Korea in the early stages of the war, it then took a cautious approach and refused to send additional ground troops. Eventually, the Korean Peninsula was split in two, and Soviet influence in the Far East was weakened.
The Korean War intensified the confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union and became an important turning point during the Cold War. After the war, a series of crises broke out between the two sides in Berlin, Cuba and other regions, and nuclear weapons were once pushed to the forefront, and the world fell into the haze of Cold War confrontation.
Looking back at the Korean War, it is not difficult to find that the root cause of this war was the conflict of interests between the two camps of the United States and the Soviet Union. In the context of the Cold War, both sides sought to expand their influence in the Asian region, which led to this senseless conflict.
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The lesson of the Korean War to the world is that peace and development are the right path for human society. Only by abandoning ideological antagonism and resolving differences through dialogue and consultation can countries truly achieve mutual benefit and win-win results. War not only causes senseless loss of life and wealth, but also hinders the progress of human society.