Using Sources A-C to explain why the U.S.A. became involved in the Korean War.

The remaining pins in the third row: Thailand, Malaya and Indonesia were also vulnerable and likely to topple. Source B part a is part of a speech made by The commander-in-chief of the U.S.A. General MacArthur in 1951, explaining why he wanted to make attacks across the Chinese border. MacArthur believed that Communists conspirators in Asia had chosen to make a play for a global conquest. He believed that if the war to Communism were lost in Asia, the fall of Europe would be inevitable. MacArthur wanted to use atomic weapons in Asia. He drew up a list of targets for which he needed a total of 26 atomic bombs. He also wanted four more bombs dropped on the Chinese forces.        Source C is from the memoirs of the English Prime minister Harry Truman. His views are similar to that of General MacArthur. Truman believed that if South Korea were allowed to fall, then the fall of Europe would be inevitable. The English Prime Minister compares the Communism in Korea, to the way Hitler, Mussolini and the Japanese had acted years before. Truman said it was an example of the strong picking on the weak and an example of democracies failing to act on a situation so encouraging aggressors to keep going ahead.To summarise, in the beginning: A Communist satellite was established under Kim Il Sung in the North Korean Capital. In South Korea elections were held and an anti Communist, military government was set up under Syngman Rhee. It had improved impossible to unite the country, and Korea had become permanently divided along the 38th °N parallel. In 1949 all of China except Taiwan became Communist. South Korea felt isolated because it was surrounded by Communist North Korea, China and the Soviet Union. The U.S.A. was frightened of the spread of Communism and the threat to other non-Communist countries in the Far East and Japan, a very important country economically. The U.S. believed in the domino theory. When one state became Communist others nearby would also fall. Stalin and the Chinese saw the perfect opportunity to spread Communist influence by taking over South Korea and encouraged North Korea to attack. The Soviets never directly involved themselves, but they did lend a helping hand in the form of aid and military equipment. So, in 1950, North Korea felt they had enough ammunition and attacked South Korea. All of South Korea fell to the North except the Pusan pocket, so South Korea asked the UNO for help. The UNO had the power to support South Korea, but only if all members of its Security Council agreed to do so. The Soviet Union was boycotting UNO meetings in protest at the refusal to admit Communist China. The Security Council declared North Korea an aggressor and promised to send help to the South. Sixteen nations, headed by the U.S.A. took part immediately and later a further 32 countries participated. The commander-in-chief was the American war hero, General Douglas MacArthur. He successfully launched a seabourne landing at Inchon surprising the Communists and forced them to retreat. North Korean resistance collapsed and UN troops advanced into North Korea and approached China.In short the west and the U.S.A felt they had to get involved in the Korean War because the spread of Communism throughout Asia seemed imminent. The West and U.S.A.’s worst fear was that Japan would soon turn Communist. The Western superpowers would do anything to stop this from happening. [email protected]