Communism Spreads in East AsiaChina

Korea

Vietnam

China’s Communist Revolution• After WWII, Mao

(communist) resumed civil war against the Chiang Kai-shek aka Jiang Jieshi (nationalists) due to his weak and corrupt leadership

• Mao wins▫ People’s Republic of

China▫ Communist▫ Supported by Soviet

Union• Nationalists fled to

Taiwan▫ Supported by USA▫ Considered breakaway

province by mainland China

Why Mao Won?

• Support of peasants

▫ Redistributed land to peasants

▫ Ended oppression by landlords

• Nationalists brought economic hardships, government corruption, reliance on West

• Won railroads and captured city by city with help from peasants

Mao’s Totalitarian State

• One party• No religion:

▫ discouraged practice of Buddhism & Confucianism

• Government control of landlords and businesses• Labor camps• Killed opposition• With Soviet help, build infrastructure• Collectivization: forced agricultural land and

labor to increase productivity• Allied with the SU in 1950s

Great Leap Forward

• People to make superhuman effort to increase farm and industrial output

• Communes: several villages for agriculture and industry

• Epic Fail: low quality, useless goods, food shortages▫ Famine: 2 years= 55

million died• Mao reduces size of

communes

China’s Cultural

Revolution• Goal: Free China of bourgeois

(elite/upperclass) tendencies▫ Red Guards (Mao’s “Gestapo”)

beat and killed bourgeois▫ Skilled workers and managers

were forced to leave their jobs and do manual labor, some in labor camps

▫ Schools and factories closed▫ Economy slowed and civil war

loomed▫ Mao backed off the revolution

and restored order

A propaganda report emphasizes the effect of brainwashing and the cult of personality of Mao Zedong in communist China.

China: The Wild CardDespite sending economic aid, China &

Soviet Union weren’t allies due to border and ideological disputes▫ Soviets end up withdrawing aid &

advisors in 1960

• USA support Kai-shek & nationalist movement to Taiwan▫ Refused to acknowledge China for fear

of threat of communism spreading throughout all of Asia

▫ BUT, strategic to improve relations with China against the Soviet Union

▫ 1971, USA allowed People’s Republic of China (communist China) to replace Taiwan in the UN

▫ 1972: President Nixon visits Beijing to open trade relations with China

▫ 1979: US set up formal diplomatic relationship

Korean War

Korea:

WWII &

Cold War

• Prior to WWII, Korea was occupied by Japan• After WWII, Soviet Union and USA split Korea into North &

South along the 38th Parallel north▫ North Korea=communist, supported by Soviets; ruled by Kim Il Sung▫ South Korea=democratic, supported by USA; ruled by Syngman Rhee

North Korea begins

war

• North wants control of whole peninsula & attacks the South-1950

• United Nations, headed by USA & General MacArthur, sent troops to help South▫ NOTE: MacArthur is eventually

fired for wanted to invade China (allies with Soviets)

• North takes most of peninsula, but stopped at Pusan

• Inch’on: UN troops landed behind enemy lines, captured railroads, cutting North’s troops off from North and supply lines▫ Led to North

surrender in South• UN moved North to

Yalu River (border of Korea & China)▫ Mao, worried about

USA/UN, sent Chinese troops to border

▫ With help from Chinese, North pushes South back to 38th

Parallel

Stalemate

• An Armistice will be signed -1953- due to stalemate

• Troops will dig in and still today occupy the DMZ-demilitarized zone: area with no military forces▫ Along 38th Parallel

• NO peace treaty has ever been reached

• 2013: North Korea claims it is breaking armistice with nuclear buildup and testing

Two Koreas• North: communist

▫ Economic decline▫ Inefficient collective farms▫ Build up of nukes▫ Chinese give economic aid▫ Isolated▫ Poor-no electricity▫ Cult of personality around dictator

• South: democratic

▫ Capitalist

▫ Economic boom

▫ Economic & military aid from USA

▫ prosperous

Vietnam

French Lose Indochina

• French Indochina (Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia)▫ Wanted independence after WWII

• Communist Guerrillas: small groups of communist soldiers making raids on French colonists

• Ho Chi Minh: Communist who fought Japanese during WWII then turned on French▫ national hero▫ Uses USA Declaration of

Independence to gain USA support to declare independence from French

• USA backs France due to Ho’s ties to communism▫ Economic aid, no military

aid• Dien Bien Phu: French

lose final battle in 1954 and leave Vietnam

• Geneva Conference: USA, Britain, France vs SU, China, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam▫ French Indochina becomes

3 independent countries: Laos and Cambodia

become communist▫ Divide Vietnam at 17th

Parallel

Vietnam Divided• North Vietnam

▫ Led by Ho Chi Minh

▫ Communist

▫ Support of Soviet Union & China

Send economic aid, but no troops

• South Vietnam

▫ Led by Ngo Dinh Diem

▫ “Democratic”

Corrupt and brutal

▫ Support of USA

USA’s Domino Theory:

-view that one communist victory would lead to rest of governments in region to fall to communism

-USA wanted to prevent this

Ho Wants Unified Vietnam

• Ho uses his Vietcong to attack the South• President JFK sends military advisors to

train South’s army (Vietminh)

▫ Kennedy’s thoughts on Vietnam “It is their war. They are the ones who have to win it or lose it” Did not like the growing USA involvement

▫ South’s Diem and USA’s JFK both assassinated Wonder if outcome in Vietnam would have

been different?

• USA President LBJ increases USA military presence in Vietnam

Gulf of Tonkin

• South raiding North on islands in Gulf of Tonkin

• North attacks USS Maddox thinking it assisted in raids

• President LBJ tells Congress about attack, but not raids▫ Believing attack on Maddox was unprovoked,

Congress passes Tonkin Resolution President can take all necessary measures to

prevent further aggression in Southeast Asia

• USA begins bombing targets in North (Operation Rolling Thunder)▫ > 2 million USA troops sent to Vietnam

Ground War

• North Guerrillas: knew country better than USA▫ Villages became military

targets▫ Couldn’t trust anyone Aid USA during day,

Vietcong by night

• Ho Chi Minh Trail▫ Supply line running from

north to south through Cambodia & Laos Forced war to expand into

Cambodia & Laos (by President Nixon)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpWEv9Q0XQ4&list=RD02KnnLrmboOYE

TET Offensive• 1968: North led massive attack in

South on TET-Vietnamese New Year

• Failed with massive casualties• BUT infiltrated South• Turning Point-positive for North

because no part of South was secure from attack

Issues for USA

• Highly televised war that divided the nation

• Civilian casualties, American casualties = extremely high▫ Large numbers of POWs and MIAs

• USA morale was low• Due to tv and no explanation of

civilian deaths (traitors), soldiers not heroes to many people

• Tired of body bags for a war that didn’t involve us

Paris Peace Accord: 1973

• USA involvement in Vietnam-longer than 10 years

• Nixon signs cease-fire• USA withdraws with no victory• Separated North and South Vietnam at

17th Parallel and created a demilitarized zone (DMZ)

• North promised not to invade South• South left to determine own future

• 1975: North conquered South & became communist▫ USA applies embargo

Khmer Rouge

• During Vietnam War, Khmer Rouge (communist guerrillas) overthrew Cambodian government

• Khmer Rouge led by dictator Pol Pot▫ 1/3 of population (1 million)

was slaughtered, starved, or worked to death to rid country of western influence

• After Vietnam unified, took over Cambodia and ended genocide

Did the “dominoes” fall?

• After the USA withdraws from Vietnam, some dominoes did fall-former French Indochina

▫ Vietnam

▫ Laos

▫ Cambodia

• Stopped there; other parts of Southeast Asia remained capitalist and democratic