A Cold Korean War Essays

The Korean War was an influential event that started in 1950 and caused a lot of controversy among Americans and Koreans. The war was caused by the US trying to preserve the Democratic side of Korea, the south side. The Koreans were not happy, however, and the Viet Kong and North Korean soldiers fought tooth and nail to get the Americans out of the country. There was eventually an end to the war of course but not without lots of casualties on both sides and a hostile environment around the border of the two countries.

Did you know that Americans were involved in another country’s civil war? As a part of the Cold War, the Korean War had started when North Korea invaded South Korea. Lasting from June 25, 1950 to July 27, 1953, the country of Korea, to this day, has failed to unify. Because the United States underestimated the war, most Americans barely acknowledged it. However, the Korean War changed the way Americans viewed life during the 1950s by opening doors to social advancement, impacting the economy, and preparing Americans for future conflicts.

One of the major conflicts in the 20th century was the Cold War. One of the key events of the Cold War was the Korean War (1949-1953). Essentially, the Korean War was a conflict between the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), and the Republic of Korea (ROK). However, the DPRK was backed by Stalin’s Communist regime. While the ROK, was backed by US and UN forces. The support that the divided Koreas received demonstrates that this war was the direct result of Cold War tensions between the USA and the USSR. Therefore making this war a proxy war between the two superpowers.

The Korean War was a defining part of the United States foreign policy in the Cold War Era and was a response to threats from the Soviet Union. The Korean War was a culmination of tensions between North and South Korea that had resulted from the influences the United States and the Soviet Union inculcated into the countries during their occupation. When the Korean War was initiated, by the invasion of South Korea by North Korea, the United States and their allies in the United Nations perceived the invasion as a bold communistic expansion effort that occurred without provocation. (Document A). Further validating this idea was the fact that the attack was endorsed by the USSR, and partially lead by Red China, both of which were communist countries

The Korean War occurred from 25 June 1950 to 27 July 1953 when armistice was signed. (Stokesbury) It was between Republic of Korea and Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. United Nations were on the South Korea side and China and Soviet Union were at North Korea side. North Korea invaded South Korea after United States’ military evacuation. North Korea occupied most of South Korea, but after Incheon Landing, it turned the tide of the war. Finally, the war ended by declaring ceasefire and made Military Demarcation Line. The war was significant because it was the war between democratic and communist countries. It was also the time of Cold War when Soviet Union and United States were having political and diplomatic conflicts

In America we always remember the importance of the wars we fought. For some reason most people always forget or skip the Korean War. Korea was a small colony that was taken over by Japan in 1910. When World War II ended Japan’s government was falling apart and could no longer support Korea. This left the colony to anyone who wanted it, and Russia answered the call. Russia successfully conquered the north when the south contacted the U.S. to stop them. War broke out on June 25, 1950 which had sealed the fate of the Korean Peninsula. The Korean War was mostly a coalition with communist values and capitalist values. The outcome of this war has shaped the way works.The Korean War was very important to the world because it showed that America was unprepared, the Korean Peninsula was divided, and the countries who were involved.

The Korean War changed the face of American Cold War diplomacy forever. In the midst of all the political conflict and speculation worldwide, the nation had to choose between two proposed solutions, each one hoping to ensure that communism didn?t sweep across the globe and destroy American ideals of capitalism and democracy. General Douglas MacArthur takes the pro-active stance and says that, assuming it has the capability, the U.S. should attack communism everywhere. President Harry Truman, on the other hand, believed that containing the Soviet communists from Western Europe was the best and most important course of action, and that eliminating communism in Asia was not a priority.

The Korean War had a major impact on American society, military, economy, and culture. The War started in 1950 and it ended after a dreadful three years. It all began when soldiers from the North Korean People’s Army poured across the 38th parallel to invade South Korea. The United States is allied with South Korea, therefore it was affected greatly by the war. The U.S. had one hundred and forty-two thousand casualties from the war. United States defence spending went up from twelve to sixty billion dollars and failed to liberate North Korea. The war is often referred to as the forgotten war, because it was never really a war according to President Truman. Truman labeled the war as a police action. Furthermore, World War II is also a reason for the Korean War being called the forgotten war. The Korean War has affected multiples people’s lives in different ways.

Over the course of the 1950s, no event captured the tension of the infamous Cold War more than the Korean War. Fought to prevent the spread of communism in Korea, the Korean War was a bold political victory for the United States because America sent a clear message to the entire world, as it was the first military action of the Cold War, that the spread of communism will not be tolerated by the strongest military in the world, the United States. In addition, the Korean War was an economic benefit for the United States due to the increase of military spending and preserved the freedom of the South Korean people. However, the Korean War is often labeled as the “forgotten war” due to the failure of the United States to eliminate communism in

According to Robert, without Korean War there would be a huge difference in the world’s history. In addition to that Robert also stated “the Korean war shaped the course of the cold war by both resolving the incoherence which characterized U.S. foreign and defense efforts in the period 1946-1950 and establishing important new lines of policy”(1980). The Korean War led to the changes of policy through three processes in changes on the domestic political situation, defense budget and NATO. The domestic policy changes let the leader of the country to do whatever they wanted to do before (Robert,

The United States geared up for a war against communism. Not more than a day after Seoul fell, the US had officially entered the war and had ground troops committed, an action backed by the U.N. At the beginning of the war the U.S. soldiers had little combat experience and they were in a foreign land. This was the reason for the mass casualties sustained by the U.S. “US Army casualties from June 25 through July 31, 1950 totaled 6,003: 1,884 Killed In Action, 2,695 Wounded In Action, 523 Missing In Action and 901 reported captured. Of these more than half were from the 24th Infantry Division- 3,610.”( Evanhoe, Ed. "The Korean War." The Korean War. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Feb. 2012. <http://www.korean-war.com>.)

America's Involvement in the Korean War The USA emerged from WWII as the dominant Western, democratic superpower. She quickly established for herself a role as world policeman, and defender of the "free world". When, on June 25th 1950, Communist North Korean forces invaded the South of the country, the USAwas quick to step in, and with UN support and approval, sent in military forces to restore the balance. However, it is questionable whether moral principles were the only reason for America's involvement in the Korean War, or whether perhaps the Truman administration had other validation for such a huge scale military campaign.

The third source that I decided to use was an English newspaper. The headline from the article was the first thing that stood out, suggesting that Trump might bomb North Korea next. The article barely covers the event, instead, it covers Eric Trump's comments and the possibility that North Korea can be next. The newspapers instigates that the United States might use military action against North Korea though including Eric Trump's statement hinting that his father is not afraid to make "North Korea...next on the hit list if Kim Jong-Un carries on developing atomic weapons" (Daily Mirror, April 14, 2017). The newspaper just adds more fuel to the existing tension between the United States and North Korea with such a provocative statement.

The Korean War also illustrated that the United States would stand up to communism. The United States was against the foreign policy of containment. The Korean War was the first military stand against communism. This war proved that the United States would do anything to

The Korean War was a trying time for America. The nation was getting involved in a war that had little or no possibility of a fortunate outcome. The Korean people were divided among how the country should be run. A uniform system of government looked like it may never come to be. In order to protect one of its vital interests as well as to prove to the rest of the world that America didn’t stand for communism, the United States began taking up arms. The war would prove a most difficult task to achieve successfully. In fact, it was almost impossible to continue fighting what seemed to be far from a worthy sacrifice of American lives.