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USII.7c
Major Conflicts in the Post-World War II Era
Big
Ideas
1
Since World War II, the United States has been directly
involved in a number of conflicts. Many of these were the
result of divisions created by Cold War tensions (conflicts) and
hostilities (fighting).
2
The Cold War became a real war in Korea. During
World War II, the country of Korea was invaded and occupied
by Japan. After World War II, Korea was divided into the
nations of North Korea and South Korea by the thirty-eighth
parallel. North Korea formed a communist government and
was supported by the Soviet Union and China. South Korea
formed a republic and was supported by the United States.
1. What form of government did North Korea adopt after
World War II?
2. What two countries supported the North Korean
government?
3. What form of government did South Korea adopt?
4. What country supported the South Korean government?
3
In 1950, North Korean soldiers invaded South Korea
with the goal of uniting both countries into one communist
nation. Immediately, the United Nations called for a cease-fire.
When North Korean troops would not stop fighting, the UN
voted to send in troops to restore peace. Most of the UN troops
were from the U.S. Thousands of Chinese soldiers fought for
North Korea. By 1953, communist troops had been pushed
back into North Korea. The Korean War ended that same year
in a stalemate (a tie with no winner). South Korea continues to
remain an independent country today.
Major Conflicts in the
Post-World War II Era
1. Korean War
 ____________ Korea
and the U.S. resisted
______________ and
__________ Korean
aggression.
 The conflict ended in a
_______________.
4
Approximately 33,000 U.S. soldiers killed and over
100,000 injured. The high number of American casualties made
it a very unpopular war, and President Truman decided not to
run for re-election. Dwight D. Eisenhower would become the
next president of the United States.
5. The Korean War ended with a ____________________,
or a tie.
6. Is Korea united into one country today?
5
The Cold War almost became a real war in Cuba, too. In
1962, the U.S. became involved in the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Soon after President John F. Kennedy took office, he learned
that the Soviet Union had built several launch sites for missiles
in Cuba, another communist nation. With the communist island
country of Cuba only 90 miles south of the tip of Florida,
President Kennedy was very concerned that Cuba might use the
missiles to attack the United States. These missiles could reach
many of our country’s largest cities. Kennedy demanded that
the Soviets remove the missiles.
6
When they did not, he ordered United States Navy ships
to blockade, or prevent other ships from entering or leaving, the
island. On national TV, he announced that the U.S. Navy
would set up a blockade around Cuba to stop all Soviet ships
carrying missile site materials from reaching the island.
President Kennedy also demanded that the missile sites be
dismantled. The nations of the world held their breath and
hoped that they would not be pulled into a third world war.
After thirteen tense days, a compromise was reached. The
Soviet Union agreed to stop sending missiles to Cuba and to
remove all the missiles that were already there. The U.S.
agreed to end the blockade and to remove American missiles
from near the Soviet Union.
7. What country was building missile launch sites in Cuba
in the early 1962?
8. When the Soviets did not remove the missiles after
Kennedy’s
first
warning,
he
ordered
a
________________ of Cuba in order to prevent any ships
from entering or leaving the island.
Major Conflicts in the
Post-World War II Era
2. Cuban Missile Crisis
 The _____________
____________ planned
to place missiles in
Cuba.
 The Soviets removed
the missiles in response
to an American
______________ of
Cuba.
9. EXPLAIN the compromise the two countries reached to
end the Cuban Missile Crisis.
7
During Kennedy’s presidency another conflict erupted.
This time it was in Vietnam. Like Korea, Vietnam was divided
into two countries after World War II. North Vietnam became
a communist country while South Vietnam became a republic
(democracy). In the late 1950s, South Vietnamese communists,
called the Vietcong, tried to take over the South Vietnamese
government. North Vietnam helped the Vietcong. Between
1956 and 1962, the U.S. sent money, war supplies, and soldiers
to help South Vietnam fight the Vietcong. By 1963, the
Vietcong were winning the war.
10.What form of government did North Vietnam adopt after
World War II?
11.What form of government did South Vietnam adopt after
World War II?
12.What group inside South Vietnam tried to take over the
government with help from North Vietnam?
13.The ______________ sent money, war supplies, and
soldiers to help South Vietnam fight the communists.
8
U.S. political leaders were afraid that if South Vietnam
fell to communism, the rest of Southeast Asia would eventually
follow. As a result the United States intervened to stop the
spread of communism into South Vietnam. During the 1950s,
the U.S. began sending military advisors to assist the South
Vietnamese army. Then in August 1964, it was reported that a
North Vietnamese gunboat had attacked a U.S. Navy ship in the
Gulf of Tonkin near Vietnam. President Johnson sent more
soldiers to South Vietnam, hoping they could help defeat the
Vietcong. The Vietnam War had begun. From 1965 to 1973,
the United States intervened to stop the spread of communism
into South Vietnam.
9
The fighting in Vietnam was very different from previous
wars. The U.S. had experience fighting conventional wars with
tanks, air strikes, and big battles. It was not prepared to fight a
guerrilla war in dense jungle terrain. To make matters worse,
U.S. soldiers had trouble identifying the enemy. South
Vietnamese, who were sympathetic to the communists, would
appear to be civilians, yet attack U.S. troops.
10
Americans were divided over whether the U.S. should be
involved militarily in Vietnam. The nation’s leaders were also
divided. Most government leaders were either hawks or doves.
Hawks, named for the fierce bird of prey, were people who
supported the war. They thought that if South Vietnam became
a communist country, its neighbors would soon also become
communist, too. The idea that once one country fell to
communism, neighboring countries would follow was called
the domino theory. Doves, named for the symbol of peace,
were those who wanted the war to end. Thousands of
Americans demonstrated to protest U.S. involvement in
Vietnam. Protests took the form of marches, sit-ins, and the
burning of draft cards.
14. The belief that idea that once one country fell to
communism, neighboring countries would follow was the
_______________ ________________.
15.What is the difference between a “hawk” and a “dove?”
A ________________ wanted the war to end—peace. A
_______________ supported the war.
16.How did many Americans show their opposition to the
Vietnam War?
Major Conflicts in the
Post-World War II Era
3. Vietnam War
 The U.S. became
involved to stop the
spread of communism
into ___________
Vietnam.
 The belief that idea that
once one country fell to
communism,
neighboring countries
17.The Vietnam War ended with a ________________would follow was the
______________.
_______________
Theory.
 Americans were
18.What happened to South Vietnam when the U.S.
______________ over
withdrew its troops?
whether the U.S. should
be involved militarily in
Vietnam.
 The Vietnam War ended
in a ________________________
19.Is Vietnam united into one country today?
agreement in which
U.S. troops withdrew.
11
The Vietnam War continued through the presidencies of
Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon. In 1973, American
involvement in the conflict ended in a cease-fire agreement in
which U.S. troops withdrew. Soon after the last American
ground troops left Vietnam, fighting broke out again. Without
the support of the U.S. troops, South Vietnam could not win the
war. In April 1975, the government of South Vietnam
surrendered, allowing the government of North Vietnam to gain
control of the whole country. The Vietnam War was over.