Cold War Heats Up American History 18-2

Main Idea After WWII, China became a communist nation and Korea was split into a communist north and democratic south.

Why It Matters Now Ongoing tensions with China and North Korea continue to involve the US.

China becomes a Communist Country Chiang Kai-shek, the leader of the Nationalists, was supported by the US and had fought against a Communist takeover for 20 years. The US had given the Nationalists over $3 billion in aid. Chiang was corrupt and didn’t treat his people well. There was growing support by the peasants for a communist government.

China becomes a Communist Country Mao Zedong, the leader of the Communists, fought to gain peasant support through education, increasing food production, and promoting equality for all.

China becomes a Communist Country The civil war in China ended with the Communists taking over China. The Nationalists fled to Taiwan.

China becomes a Communist Country The US refused to accept the Communists as the leaders of China until the 1970s. People feared the domino effect: that more countries surrounding China would become communist, like dominoes falling.

Korean Peninsula

Korean War Korea was freed from Japanese control during WWII by the Soviets (in the North) and the US (in the South). The sections were divided at the 38th parallel. The US pushed the southern part of Korea to become a democracy. The Soviets and communists in the northern part of Korea created a communist government.

Korean War When US troops left after WWII, the North invaded the South in an attempt to create one Korea, ruled by communism. The UN and the US sent in forces to fight with the south against a communist takeover.

Korean War: First integrated units

Korean War Once the US had pushed to China, MacArthur, the general, pushed the US to invade China as well to fight against the spread of communism there. Truman refused to let him invade. MacArthur didn’t listen; Truman fired MacArthur. War with China was avoided, preventing a third war that might have brought the USSR in as well.

Korean War The Korean War ended in a stalemate. The peninsula is still divided at the 38th parallel. The Korean War is often called “The Forgotten War” – Americans focus on WWII and Vietnam, forgetting about this short but intense war. The war sparked hunts at home for communists within the US.