America in the Korean War

The USA emerged from WWII as the dominant Western, democratic superpower. She quickly established for herself a role as world policeman, and defender of the "free world". When, on June 25th 1950, Communist North Korean forces invaded the South of the country, the USA was quick to step in, and with UN support and approval, sent in military forces to restore the balance. However, it is questionable whether moral principles were the only reason for America's involvement in the Korean War, or whether perhaps the Truman administration had other validation for such a huge scale military campaign. 

Although the USA and USSR had been allied in WWII, US-Soviet relations quickly disintegrated after the War. An enduring political and ideological divide emerged between the democratic capitalist governments of the Western world, and the Communist governments of the East. As Soviet troops liberated Eastern Europe from Nazi occupation, the USSR supported the establishment of Communist governments in nations like Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia. The USA interpreted this as an aggressive invasion, which effectively constituted empire building. In order to stem the red tide of Communism across Europe, the USA poured billions of dollars of investment into Western Europe through the Marshall Plan. The Truman doctrine was set out, outlining America's intentions to stop the spread of Communism, and a policy of Containment materialized. The USA did not make any attempt to "liberate" Communist countries, but was determined to make sure that Communism did not spread any further. The USA did all she could to protect Western Europe, but little action was taken in other areas, such as SE Asia. 

Despite initial successes in securing Europe after the War, by 1949, the international situation was weakening once more. In August 1949, the USSR exploded its first atomic bomb, years before American prediction anticipated. In September, Communist forces led by Mao Tse-tung pushed back the...