The Korean War Reaches a Stalemate

Brief overview of Korean history that led to the Korean War

Given below is a brief summary of the events that led to the Korean war, Please go through these points to have a better overview of the Korean political scenario in the late 19th to early 20th centuries, for a better understanding:...

The Korean War: North Korea vs South Korea

Korea finally became free from Japanese control after the Second World War ended, only to get caught in a bigger political unrest. After the War ended, the Korean peninsula was divided into two parts at the 38th Parallel of latitude north of the equator, which was done under the watch of the Allied leaders aka United States and Soviet Union. As a result of this division two nations were created: North Korea, which was supported by Soviet Union and was Communist in nature and South Korea that was backed by the United States. North Korea was under dictator Kim Il Sung who established a socialist state, while South Korea was governed as a capitalist state by Syngman Rhee. Both countries did not recognize each others legitimacy to rule and claimed to be the sole ruler of all of the Korean peninsula. The whole North vs South situation was inevitable because both countries chose polar opposite ideologies to govern their countries; On a larger scale it was a battle between Communism and Capitalism. In 1950, North Korea launched an attack on South Korea in an attempt to unify the Korean peninsula under the North Korean rule was the beginning of the Korean War. This event shaped the two countries into what they are today and their relationship with each other, which still remains hostile. It was a war to claim the legitimacy to rule over the entire peninsula by both the countries, because both the governments wanted absolute power over the entirety of the region like the rulers in the past. They wanted to bring back the old days of Korean glory and prestige. Even though the Korean War was a small part of bigger happenings during the Cold War, it is an important event that greatly impacted history....

The Korean War and the Cold War

The Korean war should be seen in the larger context of the Cold War which was a period of geopolitical tension between the US and USSR and their respective allies aka the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc; It started at the end of the Second World War and lasted till 1991. The Korean war had a major effect on the Cold War because it showed us how far the US and USSR were willing to go in supporting their allies for their respective ideologies, so much so that they did not hesitate in directly getting involved with their military as well. Although USSR supported North Korea and its communist ideologies, it was very covert and not direct like the US support of South Korea....

Escalation

As the situation between North and South Korea escalated due to the North’s surprise attack, the United States pressured the UNSC to declare support for South Korea; In this context it is important to note that the US had a ‘Policy of Containment’, according to which it could not allow communism to spread in any part of the world. If North Korea took over the South Korea, there would be a unified communist Korea which the United States did not want at any cost. As a result, a US backed force was deployed in South Korea....

The Korean War Reaches a Stalemate

In order to turn things around for South Korea, after the heavy damage they endured due to the Chinese involvement, the American reinforcements were sent to South Korea by June 1951 to counter attack which pushed the North Korean forces back to the 38th Parallel. The US acted with swiftness, because it was totally against the idea of the entire Korean peninsula being turned into a communist state, if the North succeeded. A stalemate between the countries set in after this event, however the air warfare continued to be carried out by both the nations....

Korean War Casualties

The direct result of the Korean War was the heavy casualties seen on both sides. A recent research conducted on casualties during the Korean war suggests that at least 2 million North and South Korean civilians died, along with millions of military troops from both sides being killed. We must also keep in mind that along with Korean troops, hundreds of thousands of Chinese troops also lost their lives. Overall it can be seen that the Korean War resulted in great devastation and bloodshed for the entire Korean peninsula....

Consequences of Korean war

The signing of the armistice between North and South Korea did put an end to the war, however in the absence of an official peace treaty, the two countries are still said to be technically at war. The Armistice agreement led to the setting up of the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) to separate North and South Korea, which continues to exist even today. It is a 150 miles long region with no military presence and acts as a buffer zone between the two countries. The area surrounding the DMZ is however heavily militarized. The Korean war was devastating for the entire Korean peninsula, as there were heavy casualties on both sides. Civilians were also killed along with the soldiers and the estimated number of people killed in the war is approximately 3 million. Great damage was also caused to the economy, property and mental health of the people. The shared trauma by people in both the countries still remains very much alive, and it will take many more years, before the political relationship between both nation actually sees any significant improvement, To this day, the bitterness remains unresolved between both the countries, and the present day hostile relations between North and South Korea is living proof of it....

Conclusion

The Korean War was an important event that shaped the Cold War. It has greatly impacted the present day political scenario between North and South Korea; In fact a lot of impact of the war can also be seen in the culture, thinking process of these countries. The war was a result of a once unified nation in the past falling prey to external influences and not becoming strong internally. Had the Korean rulers not been so dependent on external factors, North and South Korea would have probably been united today. The war caused a great deal of devastation on both sides, the after effects of which are still visible today....

FAQ’s on Korean War

When did the Korean War begin?...