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Democrats Win the US Presidential Elections Again
The Democrats won the presidential elections for the 5th consecutive time. The Republicans, bitter from the loss, played party politics and tried to descredit the winning candidate, Truman, by criticsing his policy and claiming that is was not tough enough on Communism. This meant that the Truman administration could not be seen to be inactive in response to Soviet possession of the atomic bomb as that would mean losing political leverage back home. -
Truman Authorises the Development of more Nuclear Bombs
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General MacAurther's Assessment of the Republic of Korea's Army
The US' attempt to restrict Rhee before the Korean War even started is seen in General MacAurther's assesment of the South Korean army that it should be a 'force that should be capable of offering token resistance to invasion and providing no plausible basis of allegations of being a threat to North Korea.' -
The USSR Detonates its first Atomic Bomb
The Soviets successfully test their first atomic bomb, effectively ending US atomic monopoly. This made Stalin more confident to challenge the US and he became less wary of them later on. -
US Discovers that the Soviets have Atomic Capability
US intelligence sources detect traces of radioactivity in the nothern Pacific. Washington panics as the US had not expected the Soviets to have atomic capabilities until mid 1950 or 1951. The US no longer had its shield that protected it from risky foreign policies and granted it leverage in building positions of strength outside the Soviet Sphere of Influence -
The US Announces that the Soviets have Atomic Capability
In a surprisingly low-key and carefully worded statement, President Harry S. Truman informs the American people that the Soviets have exploded a nuclear bomb. We have evidence,” the statement read, “within recent weeks an atomic explosion occurred in the USSR.” The president attempted to downplay the seriousness of the event by noting that “The eventual development of this new force by other nations was to be expected. This probability has always been taken into account by us.” -
China becomes Communist
The CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese civil war leading the nationalists to quit & retreat to the off-shore island of Taiwan. The Communist People's Republic of China was formed and Mao invited foreign governments to establish diplomatic relations with the new China. This was a disaster for the US as a vast new communist state now existed in Asia. They were afraid that the Soviets would use China to promote communism in Asia. Stalin however moved quickly to establish new relations with Mao -
Kim Il Sung makes Plans to Unify Korea
Acheson's defence perimeter speech excludes South Korea from the list of countries that the US would automatically defend in the event of aggression. This led Kim Il Sung to believe that the war to reunite Korea under Communist rule would only last a matter of days, seeing that the US had not pleged to support. -
Stalin Cautiously Agrees to Kim's Invasion Plans
Stalin cautiously agrees to the invasion plans. This could be in part due to the fact that the Soviets now possessed atomic capability too and he was now less wary of antagonising the US. -
Truman Authorises the Development of the Hydrogen Bomb
Truman authorised the development of a thermonuclear or hydrogen bomb based not on fission but on the fusion process. As monopoly was no longer possible for the US, the next best thing they could do was to enjoy superiority in the field of nuclear weapons.
Truman's also asked for increased military spending:
1) $10 billion to spend on the armed forces
2) $260 million for the Hydrogen bomb project
3) $4 billion in military aid for the US allies
*Militarisation of the Cold War -
USSR Sends Military Supplies and Advisers to North Korea
Stalin sent military supplies and advisers to North Korea in May and June of 1950. He was supposedly helping them but he was actually looking out for the interests of the USSR. He did not want to openly go to war yet if Kim could conquer South Korea, it would be advantageous the the USSR by being a united Communist Korea.
- Major power manipulating the minor power -
North Korea Invades South Korea
North Korea invades South Korea. On that day, the United Nations Security Council recognized this North Korean act as invasion and called for an immediate ceasefire. -
The US Sponsors a Resolution Calling for Military Action against North Korea
In addition to rushing military supplies to South Korea, US used its positioin in the United Nations Security Council to call for military action against North Korea for the invasion. The resolution was passed only because the USSR had boycotted the union because of its refusal to accept Communist China as a permanent member of the council. -
US Sends Troops to Korea
Truman orders American troops stationed in Japan into Korea. He subsequently enjoyed widespread support for his decision that was cheered for by both Houses of Congress. 75% of the US public approved of his decision, showing the importance domestic support had on Truman's decision making process -
UN Troops Press Forward
MacArthur launched a major offensive, what was intended to finally defeat all North Korean forces and end the war. -
China Enters the War in Earnest
On Nov. 25-26, 1950, the Chinese Army entered the Korean War in earnest with a violent attack against the American and United Nations forces in North Korea. The US was caught off guard because MacArthur had grossly underestimated the number of Chinese forces they were up against and had misread the movement of Chinese armies as bluff. Mao had decided to intervene because he felt that the presence of US troops on Chinese borders was a threat to national security. -
UN Troops Suffer Heavy Losses
After China joined in, the UN troops suffer heavy losses, including 11,000 casualties in 2 days. -
Pyongyang is Reoocupied by the Communists
Chinese troops moved into Pyongyang to reoccupy it, pushing the United Nations forces steadily back towards South Korea. -
China recaptures Seoul from the UN
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Peace Talks Begin
Peace talks dragged for two years because
1) Stalin was influencing the negotiations from afar, urging Mao and Kim to extract more concessions from the US in return for ending the war
2) They could not agree where POWs should be sent, with North Korea and China rejecting the principle that POWs should not be returned to their home countries against their will -
Truman Fires MacArthur
Truman relieved General Douglas MacArthur of command of the U.S. forces in Korea and replaced him with Gen. Matthew Ridgeway. The firing of MacArthur set off a brief uproar among the American public, but Truman remained committed to keeping the conflict in Korea a “limited war." -
Stalin Dies
Stalin dies at the age of 74 causing his influence over Mao and Kim to cease -
Armistice was Reached
North Korea and South Korea sign an agreement to stop fighting. Korea is still divided, but the two countries agree to create a neutral zone called the Demilitarized Zone to separate the countries. The 38th parallel was confirmed as the boundary between North and South Korea.
