The Cold War in Asia,
China, Korea & Vietnam
Dean Acheson: United States
Position on China (1949)
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Secretary of State under Truman
played a central role in the creation of many important
institutions
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After the Communist takeover of China, Acheson
defended his previous strategy
Argues that the U.S. provided enough aid to antiCommunist forces
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Lend Lease
the Marshall Plan
the United Nations
NATO
the IMF
World Bank
$2 billion to the Chinese gov’t
$232 million in military aid
Blames the Nationalist leadership for a lack of a will to
fight
Credits the Communists for “ruthless discipline &
fanatical zeal”
Acheson rules out full-scale American intervention
because it would be too costly & would be resented by the
Chinese's masses
Mao Zedong’s Speech Commemorating the 20th
Anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party
(June 30, 1949)
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After defeating the Nationalists forces, the People’s
Republic of China on October 1, 1949.
With victory in his sight, Mao delivered a speech on the
anniversary of the party
The Russian Revolution altered China
The Chinese found Marxism-Leninism as the universal
truth
Because China has suffered under imperialism,
bourgeoisie democracy will never work there
Communism has brought advances to China
Under the leadership of the Proletariat, the workers,
petty bourgeoisie, peasants & national bourgeoisie have
united
Externally, the Communist bloc has welcomed China
into its fold
There can be no compromise with democratic elements
Mao justifies his dictatorship because imperialism still
exists in the world
If the Chinese bourgeoisie adhere to the Communist
policy, they will be allowed to prosper, if not, the state
will force them to comply
China Gets the Bomb (1964)
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Mao once derided atomic weapons & the United
States as "paper tigers“
in October 1964, China detonated its first atomic
bomb
This press statement explains why China decided
to develop nuclear weapons
China declares that the development of the bomb
is essential for defense
The bomb will help China in its struggle to
oppose “the U.S. imperialist policy of nuclear
blackmail and nuclear threats”
China had advocated the abolishment of nuclear
weapons, but the U.S. blocked these efforts
Nuclear weapons = a deterrent to U.S. aggression
Pravda: Editorial concerning The AntiSoviet Policy of Communist China
(February 16, 1967)
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Shortly after Mao’s victory in 1949, China joined the Soviet Bloc as
an ally
After the death of Stalin, Mao believed Khrushchev was too
conciliatory to the West.
Khrushchev angered Mao by refusing to give China nuclear
weapons
During the “Cultural Revolution,” Mao fanned the flames of antiSoviet sentiment amongst China’s youth
'''Sino-Soviet split''' was a major diplomatic conflict which began in
the late 1950s
The Soviet newspaper Pravda denounced Mao’s policy in 1967
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Accused Mao of trying to divert the attention from his many
domestic & foreign policy mistakes
Mao has built a cult of personality that has reached absurd
proportions
The editorial argued that Mao Tse-tung could not remain in power
without slandering the USSR
But Mao’s anti-Soviet campaign had serious consequences
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It weakened the Communist bloc & worsened the entire political
situation in Asia
It also directly helped the Americans
Richard Nixon’s Remarks at Andrews Air
Force Base on Returning From the People's
Republic of China
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Nixon decided to exploit the Sino-Soviet split to tip the balance
of the Cold War in the United States’ favor
At the conclusion of his trip, the United States and the PRC
Governments issued the Shanghai Communiqué, a statement of
their foreign policy views
both nations pledged to work toward the full normalization of
diplomatic relations
The U.S. acknowledged the notion that all Chinese on both sides
of the Taiwan Strait maintain that there is only one China and
that Taiwan is part of China
Fearing the possibility of a Sino-American alliance, the Soviet
Union yielded to American pressure for détente
The first Strategic Arms Limitation Talks were finally concluded
the same year with the SALT I treaty
Upon his return, Nixon delivered an address at Andrews Air
Force Base
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Described the mission to China as a mission for peace
Goal was to reestablish communication with China after a
generation of hostility
agreements were reached to expand cultural, educational, and
journalistic contacts
Security Treaty Between the United States,
Australia, and New Zealand (ANZUS);
September 1, 1951
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The ANZUS Treaty is a military alliance
binding Australia and the United States, and
separately Australia and New Zealand to
cooperate on defense matters in the Pacific
Ocean area.
treaty was concluded at San Francisco on 1
September 1951, and entered into force on
April 29, 1952
The Treaty was based on the principle of
the United Nations
The Treaty was intended to deter any
potential aggressor in the Pacific
Each signatory agrees to cooperate towards
peace & stability in the Pacific
Security Treaty Between Japan & the
U.S. (Sept. 8, 1951)
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Part of the wider American defense network in the
Pacific
Japan loses its “inherent right of self defense
Still, the Treaty recognizes that Japan as a sovereign
nation
The United States will maintain military forces in &
around the Japanese islands
Interestingly, American forces can be used to put down
large scale internal riots
This clause was directed against Communist
subversion in Japan
The treaty left Japan with a sizeable American military
force that persists to this day
Southeast Asia Collective Defense
Treaty (September 8, 1954)
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Also known as the Manila Pact or SEATO
created to oppose further Communist gains in Southeast Asia
headquarters was located in Bangkok, Thailand
The Treaty reaffirmed U.N. principles
Members will use peaceful means to settle international disputes
Members will use joint military operations
members will “prevent and counter subversive activities”
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This is directed against internal Communist movements
Treaty established a Council as an administrative organ
unable to intervene in the early conflicts of Cambodia, Laos, and
Vietnam because an intervention required a decision of unanimity
The organization formally ended in 1977
he North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO French: Organisation du traité de
l'Atlantique Nord; OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental
military alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty which was signed on 4 April 1949.
The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) was an international organization for
collective defense in Southeast Asia created by the Southeast Asia Collective Defense Treaty,
or Manila Pact, signed in September 1954 in Manila, Philippines. The formal institution of
SEATO was established on 19 February 1955 at a meeting of treaty partners in Bangkok,
Thailand.
The Central Treaty Organization (CENTO); originally known as the Middle East Treaty
Organization (METO) was formed in 1955 by Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Turkey, and the United
Kingdom through the Baghdad Pact. It was dissolved in 1979.
Report of The United Nations
Commission on Korea, 1950
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the U.S the USSR divided Korea along the 38th parallel after
World War II but the US did not consider this to be a
permanent partition.
South Korean President Syngman Rhee and North Korean
General Secretary Kim Il-sung were both intent on reuniting the
peninsula under their own system.
On June 25, 1950, North Korea struck across the 38th parallel
Soon afterwards, the United Nations debated the issue.
Having walked out just prior to the debate, the Soviets were
unable to prevent the passage of a U.N. resolution which
pledged assistance to the beleaguered South Koreans.
This U.N. Report on Korea outlines the causes of the war and
efforts to stabilize the situation.
The report places blame on North Korea for the conflict
The division of Korea into two states is described as “artificial”
& the primary cause of the war
Although the reunification of Korea is desired, the North
Korean gov’t is an obstacle to this goal
It is important that democracy be maintained in Korea
Andrei A. Gromyko: On American
Intervention in Korea (1950)
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Andrei Andreyevich Gromyko (1909 – 1989)
was a Soviet politician and diplomat
served as Minister for Foreign Affairs for the
Soviet Union (1957-1985) and Chairman of the
Presidium of the Supreme Soviet (1985-1988).
At outbreak of the Korean War, Gromyko
condemned U.S. intervention in the conflict.
Gromyko blamed South Korea for provoking
the North
Accused the South of planning to invade the
North
Also blamed the U.S. for encouraging the South
to attack
U.S. is using the United Nations as a cover for
its aggressive designs
Truman On Korea and Relieving Macarthur
from Command (April 11, 1951)
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To lead U.N. forces in the Korean War, Truman appointed the
aggressive & outspoken general Douglas MacArthur
In October 1950, Communist China intervened on North Korea's
behalf, raising the specter of a third world war.
MacArthur urged Truman to attack Chinese bases across the Yalu River
and use atomic bombs if necessary. Truman refused both suggestions.
The Chinese pushed American forces far back into South Korea, but
after much bloody conflict the opposing forces eventually found
themselves back at the original starting point.
Truman did not want to draw Russia & its atomic weapons into the
conflict.
On April 11, 1951, Truman relieved MacArthur of his command.
The war, and the dismissal of MacArthur, helped to make Truman so
unpopular that he eventually chose not to seek a third term.
Truman defended his decision
The goal in Korea is to prevent a world war
MacArthur wanted to escalate the conflict which, in Truman’s opinion,
was too dangerous
It was therefore necessary to dismiss the general
General Douglas Macarthur: Farewell Address to
Congress (April 19, 1951)
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After his dismissal, MacArthur returned to Washington (his
first time in the continental US in 11 years), where he made
his last public appearance in a farewell address to the U.S.
Congress, which was interrupted by thirty ovations.
In this closing speech, he recalled: "Old soldiers never die,
they just fade away." 'And like the old soldier of that ballad, I
now close my military career and just fade away - an old
soldier who tried to do his duty as God gave him the light to
see that duty. Good-bye.‘
On his return from Korea, after his relief by Truman,
MacArthur encountered massive public adulation, which
aroused expectations that he would run for the US
presidency as a Republican in the 1952 election.
In this document, MacArthur defends his position on the
Korean conflict.
The Communist threat is global, the U.S. must have a global
strategy
The U.S. cannot “appease” the Communists
Since WW2, the Pacific is a vital area for American defense
To win the war in Korea, the U.S. had to attack China
The Korean people want & need American assistance
Vietnamese Declaration of
Independence, 1945
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After the defeat of Japan in 1945, France, the old colonial power,
tried to reclaim its colonies in Indochina - i.e. Vietnam,
Cambodia, and Laos.
But France faced opposition, which it had been able to beat
down before the war, from a nationalist political party.
This party, the Vietnamese Communist Party, had been founded
in Paris in 1930 by Ho Chi Minh (1890¬ 1969)
The Viet Minh fought a guerilla war against both the Japanese
and the Vichy French forces - making the Viet Minh an ally of
the United States at that time.
Looking for recognition from the United States and other
Western countries, Ho and his colleagues proclaimed the
Democratic Republic of Vietnam on September 2, 1945. The
Vietnamese Declaration of Independence mirrored the United
States’ own declaration of 1776
It also cited the French declaration of the Rights of Man
The document outlined French misdeeds against the Vietnamese
& urged the West to recognize Vietnam
Instead of supporting the Republic, the West recognized French
claims.
The Cold War
1947-1991
Shifting power in the International System:
Beginnings of the Cold War
Soviet Union’s ideological advantages
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USSR nor its communist allies had ever
been a colonial power during the initial
stages of the Cold War.
History of the USSR from 1940s and 1950s
seemed to be a model of rapid
industrialization and economic growth to be
followed.
USSR provided economic and military aid
to liberation movements
United States appealed to
non-western nationalists
due to:
anticolonial rhetoric of U.S. policymakers (eg.
Atlantic Charter)
Problem:
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U.S. was increasingly viewed by some
nationalists as too closely tied to the interests of
the former European colonial powers.
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Worried of Soviet expansion – results in the
Truman Doctrine (March, 1947)
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Britain and France
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How to maintain /salvage control with
nationalist movements and international scene
working against them?
Fight expensive wars to retain colonies, or try
and retain influence through other means?
British initial responses
French initial responses
New economic interests in former
colonies: post 1945
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“multi-national” / “trans-national”
corporations
Old colonial monopolistic systems and the
post-1945 global market economy
Corporate support for nationalist/
independence movements.
the great paradox of the whole anti-colonial
process
The Cold War 1960-1991