The Cold War
Meeting 4.
Developments in South East Asia: China, Korea, Vietnam. War in Korea 1950-53.
Atomic Bomb
6 December 1941
FDR authorizes $2 billion for the Manhattan Project to develop nuclear
weapons
December 1942
First controlled and self-sustaining nuclear fission reactor
16 July 1945
First successful atomic bomb detonated at Los Alamos, New Mexico by
Oppenheimer and his team (in all over 120,000 individuals were involved in research and
production of the bomb)
6/9 August 1945
Atomic bombs annihilate Hiroshima and Nagasaki
1945-49
American monopoly on nuclear weapons
1947
US complete first military plans including the use of nuclear weapons
(to be dropped on key Soviet governmental and strategic targets)
29 August 1949
Soviet Union detonates its first atomic bomb (US have probably over
200 bombs by then)
1 November 1952
Enewetak – US detonate their first hydrogen bomb
12 August 1953
Soviet Union detonates their first hydrogen bomb
Vietnam
Inter-war period
Radical Indochinese Communist Party (ICP) takes a lead in struggle
against the French colonial power
1940
September
Occupation of the country by Japanese forces following the French defeat by
Hitler in Europe
ICP leader – Ho Chi Minh – forms Vietnamese Independence League (Viet Minh) against
both the French and the Japanese
1945
Viet Minh (with US and Chinese assistance) liberates most of Tonkin
March
Japanese arrest all French soldiers and officials on the territory controlled by
them
Autumn
Ho Chi Minh controls the space vacated after the collapse of Japan
2 September Ho Chi Minh proclaims the Democratic Republic of Vietnam
Autumn/Winter
Chinese Nationalist Forces and the British take control over most of
Vietnam
1946
6 March
Ho Chi Minh concludes an agreement with Jean Sainteny (the agreement is the
result of restitution of French control over most of Vietnam by the British and leaving the
territory by the Chinese; both USA and USSR ignore Minh’s appeal for help) Ho-Sainteny
Agreement recognizes independence of North Vietnam and agrees on a plebiscite in the south
1 June
French High Commissioner for Indochina (Admiral Thierry d’Argenlieu)
proclaims independence of Republic of Cochin China
November
Break of negotiations leads to military struggle which will last until 1954
1949
French negotiate an agreement with ex-Emperor Bao Dai, recognizing impendent state of
Vietnam under their complete control
Communist victory in China gives a stable base of support for Ho Chi Minh
1954
13 March – 7 May
Defeat of the French forces in the battle of Dien Bien Phu; the
battle, in which French suffered over 20,000 casualties and Viet Minh 29,000 casualties ended
the war in Indochina and Western colonization in Asia
1956
July
Geneva Accords granting independence to Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia;
Vietnam in divided along the 17th Parallel pending future elections
South Vietnam establishes rule under a Catholic politician Ngo Dinh Diem
CHINA
1945-49
Chinese Civil War
1911
Sun Yixian, leader of Guomindang (Nationalists) is elected the provisional
president of the Republic of China
1921
Foundation of the Chinese Communist Party
1925
Death of Sun followed by acquiring of power by Chiang Kai-shek (Jiang
Jieshi), who eliminates all potential opponents
1926
Chiang purges Communists from the Guamindang institutions
1926-34
Development of Jiangxi Soviet Republic by Communists, until they are forced
out by Chiang and retreat to the north
1932
Japanese client state in Manchuria
1935-36
Chiang is forced to form a united front with Communists against Japanese
1937-45
Chinese- Japanese war; during the struggle against Japanese advance Chiang
and Mao struggle for domination over Chinese free territories
1945
August
End of war against Japan; Japanese forces still hold vast territories in China;
CCP numbers over 1.2 million with an army of 900,000 and is further strengthened by
equipment surrendered by Japanese to Russians in Manchuria
Autumn
US attempts to strengthen Chiang’s forces and enforce reform in China
1945-7
December 1945-January 1947
General George C. Marshall’s mission to China
arranging a cease-fire between the two sides, which is broken in spring ’46.
1946
26 June
Full scale war breaks out between CCP’s People’s Liberation Army and
Chiang’s troops; National army attacks Communists in a full fledged war; Chiang is
supported by USA, Mao by Soviet Union, but both do not engage their troops in the struggle
limiting involvement to military and financial help
1947
mid-May
Communists open a major offensive against weakened, run by corruption
Chiang’s regime; additional weakening is the result of land reform introduced by Mao
(peasants willingly support Communists)
1948
September
surrender)
Massive campaign in Manchuria pushes Nationalist forces into retreat (300,000
1949
January
Nationalist government flees to Formosa, and Beijing falls to Communists
1 October
Mao Zedong announces the forming of Peoples’ Republic of China (Chiang
Kai-shek escapes to Taiwan, where he establishes his own Nationalist republic of China). US
administration, expecting Mao to be Asian Tito, refuses to help Taiwan until war in Korea
breaks out
WAR IN KOREA
1947
14 November UN resolution concerning elections in Korea (Soviets do not use their veto
power, but boycott the meeting and ignore the resolution). The idea of the resolution was to
create a united Korean government and withdrawal of foreign forces.
1948
January
Soviet Union forbids UN officials to oversee elections in the north
May
sporadic clashes along the border between troops of both Koreas
13 August
Rhee Syngman takes over power from US troops and the Republic of Korea is
formed
9 September Democratic People's Republic of Korea is declared with capital in Pyongyang
under Kim Il Sung
December
UN declare Republic of Korea as the only lawfully elected government and
calls for withdrawal of all foreign forces
1949
January
USA have withdrawn all forces from Korea
June
Mao Zedong announces willingness to form an alliance with USSR
July
Chinese delegation welcomed by Stalin in Moscow; Stalin’s attempts to push
China into a war against the Western powers fail
1 October
Mao Zedong announces the forming of People’s Republic of China
December
Mao Zedong visits Moscow (two months) – signing an alliance between the
two countries concerning cooperation and mutual help
1950
12 January
US Secretary of State, Dean Acheson, announces that American “cordon
sanitaire” does not include South Korea; news about such conduct, together with intelligence
materials convince Stalin to push Kim Il Sung to act, as well as further back Ho Chi Minh’s
war in Vietnam
February
McCarthy’s accusations formulated against Soviet espionage, but also help
provided from USSR for Mao Zedong find wide reception in the USA
20 June
Acheson briefs US Congress that war is unlikely
25 June
North Korea attacks South Korea (North Korean army numbers over 135,000 +
40,000 troops supplied by China; the army is well armed with modern Soviet arms; South
Korea has an army of 95,000 poorly armed and lack of concrete support from the USA)
Following Japanese evacuation of Korea, the country is invaded in the last months of WW II
by Soviets and Americans from the north and south respectively. Years 1948-49 bring about
evacuation of all armies, but due to lack of agreement, the south establishes a democratic
government elected under the UN control with Li Syngman (Ree Syngman) as president,
while north establishes Korean Peoples’ Republic under Kim Ir Sen (Kim Il Sung). Border
between the two was based on zone of control demarcated between US and Soviets along the
38th Parallel.
25 June
UNSC Resolution 82 calls for:
1.
all hostilities to end and North Korea to withdraw to the 38th Parallel;
2.
a UN Commission on Korea to be formed to monitor the situation and report to the
Security Council;
3.
all UN members to support the United Nations in achieving this, and refrain from
providing assistance to the North Korean authorities
27 June
UN votes a decision to help Korea (USSR boycotts, and Yugoslavia abstains)
and to send troops there Korea. US troops are joined by symbolic contingents from: Canada,
Australia, New Zealand, UK, France, South Africa, Turkey, Thailand, Greece, the
Netherlands, Ethiopia, Columbia, the Philippines, Belgium and Luxemburg. (US provided
50% ground forces – most of the rest was Korean, 86% naval and 93% air forces were
provided by USA). In the peak of action UN troops numbered 400,000 Koreans, 250,000
Americans and 35,000 from other nations.
28 June
Soeul falls to North Koreans
30 June
American Far Eastern forces are commissioned to Korea under MacArthur
5 July
First US troops take part in action and are easily overcome
10 July
Upon US request, UN agrees to US Commander of its forces and Truman
nominates MacArthur to supreme command
June-August North Korean advances force South Koreans and US troops to retreat, holding
barely 10% of the Korean peninsula round Pusan
15 September UN troops under the command of MacArthur land at Inchon; the operation was
intended to liberate Soeul and cut North Korean supply lines
24 September UN troops enter Soeul; and attack from Pusan drives North Koreans into
retreat, but barely one-quarter/one third escapes
1 October
South Korean troops pass 38th Parallel
2 October
Mao informs Stalin, that China will enter the war
7 October
UN pass a resolution calling for a unified, independent and democratic Korea
9 October
UN troops pass 38th Parallel
19 October Pyongyang falls
25 October Chinese troops enter fighting in northwest Korea
1 November UN troops are 18 miles away from Yalu river (border river with China)
7 November End of Chinese operation in the north
8 November First (in history) jet battle takes place between F-80s and MiG-15s, with the
two latter shot down
October-November Debates in the US concerning the policy to be applies in Indochina; a
vision to start occupation and concentrate on Europe is opposed by ideas to counter
Communists and continue advance
24 November US troops under General Walker resume the offensive
25-26 November
Chinese offensive; Although US troops hold, Chinese Popular Army
breaks through South Korean defies and endangers the whole from; Mac Arthur manages to
control the situation, but orders to retreat beyond the 38th Parallel
December
Doubts and debates in US about the conduct of war, which by now is a UNChina war (concept to pursue war against limited warfare)
4 January
Chinese New Year’s offensive takes Soeul; counteroffensive is launched by
Ridgway
April
Front line again ailing 38th Parallel with Soeul recaptured
11 April
Truman dismisses MacArthur over disagreement concerning limited war (what
MacArthur opposed)
22 April
Chinese offensive is halted south of 38th Parallel by 19 May
End May
Front stabilizes on 38th Parallel
Stalemate
1951
23 June
Soviet UN official Jakob Malik proposes cease fire
10 July
Talks begin at Kaesong; hostilities continue
August-mid-October Fighting resumed in the Battle of Heartbreak Ridge
Late October Talks resumed at Panmunjom; fighting continues
12 November Ridgeway orders cease fire; raids, local attacks, patrols continue, but do not
break into larger actions
1952
November
General Dwight Eisenhower is elected president with a mandate to end the war;
the president orders the design of military plans including use of nuclear weapons, which are
made public
1953
5 March
May
27 June
Stalin dies
Last Chinese attacks and attempts to change front line
Armistice signed at Panmunjom
Of 132,000 North Korean and Chinese POWs, 90,000 decide not to return home; 22
American POWs also decide to stay in North Korea; of 10,218 Americans captured by the
North only 3,746 returned (others died or were murdered)
American losses – 142,091 (33,686 in action)
South Korean losses – 300,000 (70,000 in action)
Other UN Command losses – 17,260 (3,194 in action)
North Korean losses – 523,400
Chinese losses – over a million
Civilian losses estimated at over 3 million