The Korean War and the Cold War Free Essay Example

The Korean War and the Cold War were both major events in history that changed history among lots of other things. On the other hand, have you ever wondered or thought about these two wars? For example, in history class or a show and had a question asking how did the Korean War have an impact on causing the Cold War. Well, the Korean War had a great amount of development on causing the Cold War. The United States was supporting South Korea, while the Soviet Union and China decided to support North Korea. This ended up causing a conflict, which was the start of the Korean War. The United States and the Soviet Union were the first where two major countries with a world impact that had fought in a “proxy war.” This had an impact on causing the Cold War. The Korean War had many symbolic contributors to the start of the Cold War and what happened including MacArthur Douglas, how the Korean War started, and the consequences of the Korean War. These are just some of the many reasons for causing the Cold War. 

To start this off, The Korean War had many symbolic contributors to the start of the Cold War in which MacArthur Douglas was one of them. General MacArthur Douglas made a contentious decision when he decided to push the North Koreans north and recommended striking Chinese cities alleged to be assisting the North Korean army. MacArthur minimized the possibility of sparking a huge war in Asia in his desire for a greater struggle. In the source “MacArthur, Douglas” it states that “General Douglas MacArthur (center, with glasses) was the most controversial U.S. military figure of the Cold War because of his strong anti-communist views.” This states that many people do not agree with MacArthur’s decision. Furthermore, “towards the end of March 1951, the Truman administration had made up a plan to arrange with the North Koreans and the Chinese to end the Korean War”, but MacArthur ruined that because he couldn’t follow the rules. According to the article “Address to Congress,” it states that “To their dismay, before they could draft their offer to the communists, Douglas MacArthur (1880-1964), commander of the U.S. forces in the Far East- who knew of the president’s plans-foiled the negotiations with a public statement threatening the communists with an all-out war on their own land.” This just goes to show that he couldn’t play by the rules and that he was eventually fired for his actions. But this wasn’t the end of the causes of the Korean War starting the Cold War. 

In addition, how the Korean War started is another symbolic contributor to starting the Cold War. "The Korean War was a significant twenty-century battle fought on Asia's Korean Peninsula. The previously undivided nation of Korea was separated into two different countries after WW2, North Korea, and South Korea. Despite their partition, both countries have seen themselves as Korea's legitimate government. The North was influenced by the Soviet Union, whilst the South depended on American assistance. North Korea attacked South Korea in June 1950, with military and strategic support from China and the Soviet Union." The source “Korean War” indicates that “The war was, in part, a symptom of the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union.” This goes to show that the start of the Korean War alongside the whole Korean War had a part in starting the Cold War. Moreover, "All parties decided to set up the Demilitarized Zone, a heavily guarded area 2 miles wide between both the two countries' borders, as part of an armistice. Despite the ceasefire, the two Korean sides' ties have remained volatile and a political flashpoint far into the twenty-first century. Even though the active fighting concluded generations earlier, families torn by the DMZ are nonetheless separated and unable to communicate." The article by “Gale World History Online Collection, Korean War” states that “. While South Korea has emerged as an economic powerhouse since the end of the war, by contrast, North Korea has devolved into one of the most isolated and repressive countries in the world.” In the cause, this is an event that provoked issues between both sides of Korea. Which pushed over the Cold War. 

Last but not least, the consequences of the Korean War played a part in causing the Cold War. One of these consequences is Kim and Stalin. “Kim had guaranteed Stalin that the North Korean army could conquer Seoul and unify the party in a matter of weeks, far before the US could intervene. Nevertheless, President Harry S. Truman dispatched soldiers from Japan's Eighth Army towards the Korean Peninsula, along with a huge bombing campaign, to halt North Korea's progress.” Because of this the source “Putin could learn a lesson from Stalin’s reckless miscalculation over Korea.” states that “The invasion galvanized the West and transformed U.S. national security strategy, resulting in a massive mobilization, a decades-long nuclear arms race, and a permanent militarization of the Cold War conflict.” This is exclaiming that because Stalin screwed up it caused a “massive mobilization of a long nuclear arms race which made a permanent militarization of the Cold War.” "China began the very first nuclear weapons development in 1955, with Soviet assistance, as well as a military restructuring to upgrade the People's Liberation Army. This was a stage of close cooperation among both Beijing and Moscow, and China became a "frontline soldier" in the Cold War, fighting against both the United States imperialists and isolating itself from the rest of the industrial world." The “Korean War, 1950-1953" article states that “The American government viewed China’s military intervention and social radicalization as an acute and imminent threat, which provoked a deep antagonism to China in the 1960s and 1970s.” In order of this event, it resulted consequently is a part of the source of the Cold War. 

To conclude all that has been stated, the Korean War and the Cold War were both major events in history that changed history among many other things. The United States was supporting South Korea, while the Soviet Union and China decided to support North Korea. This ended up causing a conflict, which was the start of the Korean War. The Korean War had many symbolic contributors to the start of the Cold War and what happened including MacArthur Douglas, how the Korean War started, and the consequences of the Korean War. It could have been no Cold War if the Korean War and WW2 had never started. This just goes to show that the many wars such as the Korean War all played a part in the start of the Cold War.