The Korean War was a bloody war. Five millions lives were lost in total- civilians and soldiers alike. Families have been split, mostly without the consolation of ever being able to see the rest of their family in the near future. 1,500 Australians wounded, and 339 killed. Ten percent of the Korean population prior to the war have been estimated to have been wiped out. The result? An armistice, as well as two countries that are technically still at war due to the lack of an official peace treaty. The Korean War was basically a costly, massive stalemate, which by the end of nothing had been achieved. The divide and demilitarisation zone is still in place, the north is still communist- the south very much western influenced. No one ‘won’ the war, however it cost billions of dollars to recover, and almost irreparably damaged the political bonds between some countries.
People argue however that it was possible perhaps to prevent the war, or at least prevent it from being on such a large scale by encouraging peace talks, and discouraging the nationalistic traits of the US and USSR from fuelling this war. An outcome of this war is an extreme dislike of North Korea, even by countries once considered allies such as China. Launching an offensive that does not succeed is considered disgraceful for such a nationalistic country. A result of the disgrace that North Korea faces, is an extreme dislike for western countries, particularly the US. This has implications for today, as the political balance between the two countries even now is extremely fragile. (264)
People argue however that it was possible perhaps to prevent the war, or at least prevent it from being on such a large scale by encouraging peace talks, and discouraging the nationalistic traits of the US and USSR from fuelling this war. An outcome of this war is an extreme dislike of North Korea, even by countries once considered allies such as China. Launching an offensive that does not succeed is considered disgraceful for such a nationalistic country. A result of the disgrace that North Korea faces, is an extreme dislike for western countries, particularly the US. This has implications for today, as the political balance between the two countries even now is extremely fragile. (264)