The Korean War

The Korean War occurred between June 1950 and July 1953 at the end of World War II. The conflict was between non-Communists and Communist forces in Korea. North Korea invaded South Korea when conflict talks became strained. The act was condemned by the United Nations, but later up to 15 other countries under U.S. command would join in the fight. Thousands of bombs were used during the war as North and South Korea where known as nuclear super powers. Millions of people died including military members and civilians.

North Korean troops invaded South Korea when they crossed 38th parallel. At first it seemed as if the United States would stay out of the conflict as North Korean’s leader sought support from the Soviet Union. But later on, the United States would get involved by having troops sent over to assist South Korea. As things progressed there was consideration for bombs to be used by the US. Talks among world leaders with the concept of bombs proved worrisome and later deemed the idea ineffective even though thousands of bombs were used (roughly over 4,000).

The war went on for over 13 months and eventually each side starting talking. The talks lasted for a few years. New leadership took place after the passing of Stalin in the early 1950s. Afterwards things got underway for an agreement to be reached; this lead to a ceasefire in July 1953 that concluded with a signed agreement. In the end the border that separated the two parts of Korean didn’t change. So what was the point of the war? Many historians have their own theories but it didn’t end without scores of human life losses and millions of dollars some think went to waste.

The Korean War left thousands of people dead and the human life toll is considered catastrophic. One reason why so many people died was the use of bombs and radioactive weapons. Besides bombs high explosives such as napalm was used. North and South Korean experienced extensive damage with towns literally burned out. Alone, there were over 2 million civilians that lost their lives. The number was higher for military service members. Some were missing and many were wounded. After all this mess nothing changed with the border and the countries remained to be separate. Many feel it is better to just leave them each as their own entity.