75 years ago on June 25, 1950, war erupted on the Korean Peninsula when North Korean forces, equipped with Soviet tanks and artillery, launched a large-scale invasion across the 38th parallel into South Korea. The attack was sudden and overwhelming, with well-organized North Korean troops quickly capturing key cities and forcing South Korean defenders into retreat.
Korea had been divided at the end of World War II, with Soviet forces occupying the north and American forces the south. Tensions between the communist North and the U.S.-backed South had been growing, but diplomatic efforts to unify the country had failed. North Korea, under Kim Il-Sung, sought to reunify the peninsula by force, believing that a quick victory could be achieved before international powers could respond.
The United Nations swiftly condemned the invasion. Led by the United States, a multinational force was assembled under U.N. command to support the Republic of Korea (South Korea). The initial U.S. response included units from the 24th Infantry Division, which were stationed in nearby Japan. These American troops, along with South Korean forces, formed the core of the early defense, though they were often under-equipped and outnumbered.
As the North Korean advance continued southward, U.S. air and naval power were quickly brought to bear. British, Australian, and other Allied troops also joined the effort, forming a coalition to halt the spread of communism on the peninsula.
The invasion transformed Korea into the first major battleground of the Cold War, with civilians caught in the middle, and both sides suffering early losses, the Korean War would soon grow into a brutal and complex struggle that neither side had expected.
75 years ago on June 25, 1950, war erupted on the Korean Peninsula when North Korean forces, equipped with Soviet tanks and artillery, launched a large-scale invasion across the 38th parallel into South Korea. The attack was sudden and overwhelming, with well-organized North Korean troops quickly capturing key cities and forcing South Korean defenders into retreat.
Korea had been divided at the end of World War II, with Soviet forces occupying the north and American forces the south. Tensions between the communist North and the U.S.-backed South had been growing, but diplomatic efforts to unify the country had failed. North Korea, under Kim Il-Sung, sought to reunify the peninsula by force, believing that a quick victory could be achieved before international powers could respond.
The United Nations swiftly condemned the invasion. Led by the United States, a multinational force was assembled under U.N. command to support the Republic of Korea (South Korea). The initial U.S. response included units from the 24th Infantry Division, which were stationed in nearby Japan. These American troops, along with South Korean forces, formed the core of the early defense, though they were often under-equipped and outnumbered.
As the North Korean advance continued southward, U.S. air and naval power were quickly brought to bear. British, Australian, and other Allied troops also joined the effort, forming a coalition to halt the spread of communism on the peninsula.
The invasion transformed Korea into the first major battleground of the Cold War, with civilians caught in the middle, and both sides suffering early losses, the Korean War would soon grow into a brutal and complex struggle that neither side had expected.