The diplomacy of war : the case of Korea

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Title:

The diplomacy of war : the case of Korea

Author:

Mount, Graeme S. (Graeme Stewart), 1939-

ISBN:

9781551642383

9781551642390

Personal Author:

Mount, Graeme S. (Graeme Stewart), 1939-

Publication Information:

Montréal : Black Rose Books, c2004.

Physical Description:

xxxiv, 204 p., [8] leaves of plates : ill. ; 23 cm.

Contents:

Ch. 1. Should there be elections only in South Korea? -- Ch. 2. How extensive should the commonwealth commitment be, and how far north should the United Nations command go? -- Ch. 3. Did the "old commonwealth" leaders persuade President Truman not to use the atomic bomb in Korea? : were they wise to challenge U.S. policy toward China? -- Ch. 4. What should have been the cease-fire terms? -- Ch. 5. Post-war problems and the commonwealth's response.

Abstract:

"In 1950, North Korea invaded South Korea. Sixteen nations fought on behalf of South Korea; two (the People's Republic of China and North Korea itself) on behalf of North Korea... For two of the three years that the war was under way, both sides were trying to negotiate a peace." "Canadian governments know that official Washington usually does not appreciate Canadian advice on management of the world. Ottawa responds by joining multinational organizations, where it attempts to persuade other governments to establish a common front... One such multinational organization is the Commonwealth, five of whose eight members (the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa) had combat forces in Korea. Using sources from Australia, Canada, China, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, the United Nations, and the United States, Mount and Laferriere have used the Korean War as a case study. When did the Commonwealth belligerents agree with each other but not with official Washington, and what success did they have in changing U.S. policies?"--BOOK JACKET.

Subject Term:

Korean War, 1950-1953.

Korean War, 1950-1953 -- Diplomatic history.

Geographic Term:

United States -- Foreign relations -- 1945-1953.

Canada -- Foreign relations -- 1945-

Added Author:

Laferriere, Andre.

Copies:

Available:*

Library	Material Type	Item Barcode	Shelf Number	Copy	Status
Searching... 1:IIEMSA	1:GEN-BOOK	33168020365223	951.90422 M928D 2004	1	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

In 1945, following the U.S. bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan surrendered and ended its brutal 50-year occupation of Korea. But it left the country in utter disarray, with no functioning government to begin the difficult job of rebuilding. In 1948, the United States and the Soviet Union agreed to split the country in half. Each side aggressively sought reunification; the eruption of civil war was only a matter of time. In 1950, North Korea launched an offensive, that began a three-year war. But for two of the three years that the war was under way, both sides were actually trying to negotiate a peace.

Written with the help of Soviet and Chinese sources, which became accessible after the Cold War; as well as U.S., Soviet, and Chinese archival sources, memoirs, and secondary literature, this book examines the course of that war from the perspectives of all the players, including the role of the Commonwealth and the United Nations. In particular, it concentrates on Korean War diplomacy and deals with issues which affected multiple countries and had long-term implications.

One of those implications, which became obvious as Mount proceeded with his research, was U.S. policies toward Canada. Despite oft-repeated platitudes about a “special relationship,” what is striking, he argues, is the great extent to which American policy toward Canada conforms to U.S. policy toward the rest of the world. In order to compensate, Canada turned to multinational organizations, wherein they could join forces with like-minded countries to prepare a common front. What this has meant for Canada, and its potential influence in the world in the 21st century, is yet one more effect of this “Forgotten War” examined here.

Graeme Mount teaches history at Laurentian University, Sudbury, Ontario. He is author of Invisible and Inaudible in Washington: American Policies Toward Canada During the Cold War and Chile and the Nazis .