General MacArthur decides not to go all the way to the Yalu River

[stevep]

Jul 6, 2021 13:09:51 GMT belushitd said:

It is my understanding that the proximal cause for the chinese intervention in Korea was the approach to the Yalu of the UN forces. Had MacArthur stopped them 100 miles south of the Yalu, I don't believe the Chinese would have intervened.

The war wouldn't have ended at the time the UN entered and began fortifying the proposed defensive line. However, as someone else mentioned, the North Koreans would have required massive support in all forms (military, food, financial, etc.) to maintain any kind of "country". It is extremely likely that they would have been a puppet of the chinese in short order. Its entirely possible that the Chinese would have required a land corridor to the Sea of Japan between the Russian border and the rest of north Korea as the price of their assistance and then spent 10 years turning it into a port, both for commerce and for military purposes.

I supposed its possible that the Russians could have made the north koreans a puppet, but that would require facing down China over this.

Belushi TD

  Only concern with the above is that, at least while Stalin is alive, if not as far as Khrushchev's Mao and China would basically follow the Soviet lead, unless Mao felt it would be seriously determental to his own interests.  Until they were withdrawn in the late 50's communist China was very reliant on Soviet advisors and technical aid.  As such until such a break the Soviets would definitely be in charge in any decisions on what happened with the rump NK.

[James G]

Jul 6, 2021 13:09:51 GMT belushitd said:

It is my understanding that the proximal cause for the chinese intervention in Korea was the approach to the Yalu of the UN forces. Had MacArthur stopped them 100 miles south of the Yalu, I don't believe the Chinese would have intervened.

The war wouldn't have ended at the time the UN entered and began fortifying the proposed defensive line. However, as someone else mentioned, the North Koreans would have required massive support in all forms (military, food, financial, etc.) to maintain any kind of "country". It is extremely likely that they would have been a puppet of the chinese in short order. Its entirely possible that the Chinese would have required a land corridor to the Sea of Japan between the Russian border and the rest of north Korea as the price of their assistance and then spent 10 years turning it into a port, both for commerce and for military purposes.

I supposed its possible that the Russians could have made the north koreans a puppet, but that would require facing down China over this.

Belushi TD

That would be a very interesting AH scenario. Japan's whole strategic outlook towards China would have got interesting much earlier with that.