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Postwar Japan
German Occupation Zones
1) The postwar reconstruction of the devastated
islands of Japan was accomplished with much
greater ease compared to Germany because the
United States represented the sole occupying
force in the Pacific theatre.
Postwar Japan
3) Supreme Allied Commander in the Pacific,
General Douglas MacArthur, quickly moved to
radically transform the fascist Japanese empire
into a democratic society based upon individual
liberty.
Postwar Japan
4) The changes in Japanese culture and government
during the U.S. occupation were astonishing.
The formerly bloodthirsty and imperialistic
Japanese now seemed eager to “westernize”
their society in the shadow of the American
military.
Postwar Japan
5) Western culture and government united with a
determined and industrious Japanese people to
bring about a miraculous economic recovery.
Within twenty-five years, Japan developed into
one the world’s greatest industrial powers,
particularly in the automobile and electronics
industries.
Postwar Korea
Korea
1) The militaristic Japanese took over the Korean
peninsula in the early 1900s as an initial step
toward building their Asian empire. After Japan
was defeated in September 1945, the colony of
Korea was granted its long awaited
independence.
Postwar Korea
2) However, American forces had accepted the
Japanese surrender in the southern half of Korea
and the Soviet forces had done so in the
northern half. The two occupying forces were
divided by the 38th parallel of latitude that ran
though the center of the country.
Postwar Korea
3) Similar to postwar Germany, the rival occupation
forces set up their own regimes in the defeated
territories. Northern Korea was established as a
Soviet supported Communist dictatorship and
South Korea was a U.S. backed democratic
government.
Postwar Korea
4) The U.S. and Soviet forces officially withdrew
in 1949 and left two heavily armed
governments that both wanted to reunite the
two Koreas under their own rule.
5) The tense situation finally erupted on June
25th, 1950 when the North Koreans poured
over the 38th parallel with Soviet-made tanks
and armaments. In just a few weeks the
unprepared South Koreans were surrounded
with their backs to the sea in a defensive line
around the city of Pusan.
Postwar Korea
6) The invasion seemed to vindicate the
Truman Doctrine of containment by
serving as proof that even the slightest
relaxation of America’s guard was an
invitation to communist aggression around
the world.
Postwar Korea
7) President Truman took advantage of a Soviet
absence from the United Nations Security
Council on June 25th, 1950, to attain a
condemnation of North Korea as the aggressor.
Other UN members cooperated with the United
States to lend vital financial and military support
to the struggling South Koreans.
Postwar Korea
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8) Without consulting Congress, Truman ordered
U.S. forces stationed in Japan and the Pacific
under General Douglas MacArthur to help defend
South Korea. War would never officially be
declared and the conflict would be fought as a
UN “police action,” despite the fact that the
overwhelming majority of troops were American.
The Korean Conflict
1) Surrounded by the North Korean Army at Pusan,
General MacArthur planned a daring amphibious
invasion behind enemy lines by landing UN
forces on the western South Korean coast near
the port of Inchon.
The Korean Conflict
2) The brilliantly planned Inchon landing on
September 15th, 1950, achieved total
surprise and successfully pushed the
North Koreans back across the 38th
parallel within two weeks.
The Korean Conflict
3) South Korea had been restored and the stated
goal of “containment” had been fulfilled, but the
war turned on a new offensive when South
Korean troops crossed the 38th parallel during
their pursuit of the retreating North Koreans.
The Korean Conflict
4) The United Nations and the Truman
administration quickly approved of the use of UN
forces to topple the North Korean government.
However, the Chinese warned that they would not
allow aggressive troops to threaten their border
with North Korea along the Yalu River.
The Korean Conflict
5) MacArthur didn’t take the Chinese threat
seriously and UN forces were driven back to
the 38th parallel by over 150,000 Chinese
troops that poured over the Yalu River in
November of 1950.
The Korean Conflict
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9) The Korean War degenerated into a stalemate
around the 38th parallel and truce
negotiations began during the summer of
1951. However, peace talks continued for
close to two years before a cease fire was
declared.
Massive Retaliation
1) In early 1954 the Eisenhower administration
shifted foreign policy away from
conventional military action to a policy of
deterrence that was supported by building
a massive nuclear arsenal.
Massive Retaliation
2) Eisenhower established an air fleet of
super-bombers known as the
“Strategic Air Command” (SAC) in
order to carry out massive nuclear
assaults at a moments notice.
Massive Retaliation
3) A policy of “Massive Retaliation” was announced
in an effort to deter possible Soviet and Chinese
threats around the globe. Eisenhower ensured
that if the United States or its allies were
attacked, the U.S. would respond with a massive
nuclear strike against the communists.
Massive Retaliation
4) However, the massive retaliation policy proved
ineffective and impractical as the Soviet Union
continually challenged U.S. foreign policy in a
number of minor situations around the globe.
The U.S. couldn’t possibly justify the use of
nuclear weapons merely in such limited
engagements merely to support a policy of
deterrence.
Massive Retaliation
6) Deterrence was actually achieved on both sides of
the Cold War because a mutual policy of massive
retaliation led both superpowers to the
conclusion that “mutually assured destruction”
would result from any nuclear strike, no matter
who fired first.
Space Race
1) The superiority of American science and
technology was severely challenged in
1957 when the Soviet Union successfully
launched the “Sputnik” satellite into orbit
around the earth.
Space Race
2) It was a truly sobering thought that a Soviet
nuclear attack could now be launched in
the form of an intercontinental ballistic
missile (ICBMs) that could hit the United
States.
Space Race
3) The Eisenhower administration responded by
increasing funds for science and technology
education in American public schools. The
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
(NASA) was also created and funded with
billions for missile development.
Space Race
4) Despite renewed American commitment to the
space program, the Soviets narrowly beat
American astronauts into space when they
launched cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin into orbit on
April 12th, 1961. Twenty-three days later,
American astronaut Alan Shepard was the first to
enter orbit for United States.
Space Race
5) The newly elected President Kennedy made
the space program paramount and
launched the famous Apollo program with
the ultimate goal of sending an American
to the moon by the end of the decade.