The Korean War (1950-1953)Korea had once been a unified country, but was occupied by Japan from1910-1945. After World War II, the areas occupied by the Soviet Union inthe north and the United States in the south formed separate republics. OnJune 25, 1950, the communist Democratic People's Republic of North Koreainvaded South Korea. The United Nations declared North Korea the aggressorand sent military aid to the South Korean army. The United Nations troopswere mostly from the United States, and they were commanded by an American:General Douglas MacArthur. The North Korean troops were aided by thePeople's Republic of China. Proponents of the war charged that the U.S.was obligated to contain the global expansion of Communism. Opponents andlater revisionists claimed that the U.S. had no right to get involved inwhat was essentially a civil war between the two Koreas. In 1953, with neither side having the prospect of a clear victory, a trucewas signed. The armistice left the Korean peninsula divided close to thethirty-eighth parallel, practically the same border that had existed beforethe war. Presently, North Korea is one of the only remaining hard-lineCommunist nations in the world, and hostilities--if not actualwarfare--between North and South Korea exist until this day. |