How did World War II contribute to the outbreak of the Korean War?

Question

anonymous · Answer

http://www.history.army.mil/brochures/KW-Outbreak/outbreak.htm Check there and read up, it should tell you the answer. :)

goldphenoix · Answer

Korea was divided at the end of WW2 along the 38th parallel in 1945.

World War 2 created the first two superpowers, the USA and USSR, with weapons capable of massive destruction and systems to deliver them (at first, using bomber fleets).

At one point the USA actually kept B52 bombers in the air flying a massive loop journey which took them within striking distance of the USSR. Watch the movie Failsafe (old but scary as hell).

The USSR helped back Chinese communism's fight against the KMT in China (1948). when China fell to them, the West feared the Domino theory would apply and began to support may small powers e.g. South Korea. France was busy losing in french Indochina and once that nation was divided Nth/Sth and the French baled out, America would step in (but learn nothing from the French defeat nor the Brit success in malaya).

Anyway, from the Soviet and Chinese viewpoint, the immediate postwar period seemed excellent for liberating post-colonial countries, because India, Pakistan (E and W) became independent and Indonesia threw out its Dutch colonials.

China and Russia saw Western moves as a form of encirclement, hemming and limiting the Communist nations. so when North Korea wanted to invade the south, both Russia and China offered support.

Korea was one of the first "hot spots" in the Cold War conflict that existed until Gorbachev.