The USA In Asia Korea + Vietnam by icHistory

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Click on the Korean War image to navigate the PPT Click on the Korean War image to navigate the PPT. You can also access Vietnam War (resources only) via the image. USA IN KOREA USA IN VIETNAM

WHY USA DID THE USA GET INVOLVED IN KOREA? Click icon right to download free supporting resources Starter: Guess reasons from images (click on each image to find out more)

AMERICAN anti-Communism Crucial to all reasons behind America involvement in Korea was American anti-Communism. Communism represented a direct threat to America’s capitalist ideology. Americans believed that communism was a threat in two main ways. 1: Economically, as more countries became Communist they would not trade with the USA. 2: Communist countries would try to persuade or agitate for the spread of communism within the USA. FRANCE IN RUINS - 1918

COLD WAR CONTEXT ( THE SHIFTING BALANCE OF POWER ) Russia became Communist in 1917 during the First World War. Before the Second World War the Soviet Union was the only communist country in the world. However, towards the end of the war as the Nazi controlled Europe collapsed, the Soviets marched across Eastern Europe. By 1950 Eastern Europe and half of Germany lay behind the ‘Iron Curtain’. In August 1949, the Soviets tested their first atomic weapons – the USA was no longer held a monody as a nuclear power. In 1949 China became Communist and increasingly Communism was taking hold in the north of the Korean peninsular bordering China. NB: See Truman Doctrine source analysis MESSAGE ?

NSC - 68 With the shifting balance of power and the context of the Cold War, president Truman commissioned the National Security Council ( NSC ) to create a planning paper. Truman wanted a clear framework to see where the USA now stood in this new world and indication how it should move in relation to the growth of Communism. NSC – 68 made a number of recommendations. 1- To develop a hydrogen bomb, more powerful than the atomic bomb 2- To vastly increase US army forces including soldiers and weaponry 3- Higher taxation to pay for increased military spending 4- Alliances to stand with the USA against Communism 5- Ensure the American public were fully supportive of a stance against Communism at home or abroad   .

US DOMESTIC CONTEXT 1. China Lobby The China Lobby was a group that included Republicans that blamed Truman for the ‘loss of China’ to Communism in 1949. This accusation put Truman on the defensive as he was seen as being ‘soft on Communism’. 2.McCathryism Joseph McCarthy was a Republican Senator. In February 1950 he claimed there were 205 Communists in the State Department. This created a wave of panic and paranoia that led to another ‘Red Scare’ in the 1950’s. Truman ( A Democrat ) was therefore pressured into being seen as tough on Communism, especially with a mid-term elections looming in December 1950. Discussion point: can you give examples of leaders entering wars to boost their popularity?  

THE ROLE OF THE U.N. A major cause of the Second World War had been the failure of the League of Nations. Rather than stand by the concept of collective security, Britain and France in particular has appeased Hitler and with disastrous consequences. Truman, a keen student of history desperately wanted to stop history repeating itself. The United Nations had replaced the League of Nations and Truman was sure the U.N. would support the USA in its stand against the threat posed by communist forces in North Korea. APPEASEMENT

JAPAN Japan had fought against America in the Second World War. However, following the dropping of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan surrendered. Essentially under US control and with significant investment, Japan has revitalised after the war and now represented a major US asset in the region – and was key to resitting Communism in Asia. However, Japan was within 100 miles of from South Korea. If Communism were to take hold in the hole of Korea, especially the air bases in the South, Japan would be under threat. The North Korean threat was referred to as ‘The Dagger pointing at the hear of Japan’. BRITISH PM NEVILLE CHAMBERLAIN FOLLOW A POLICY OF APPEASEMENT AND REARMAMENT

INVASION OF SOUTH KOREA In June, 1950 North Korea, advised and supplied by the Soviet Union, crossed the 38th Parallel and invaded South Korea. It was the first military action of the Cold War. In response, The United Nation with the United States as its leading member joined the war on the side of South Korea.