Stalemate (July 1951 – July 1953)

For the remainder of the Korean War the UN Command and the PVA fought, but exchanged little territory; the stalemate held. Large-scale bombing of North Korea continued, and protracted armistice negotiations began 10 July 1951 at Kaesong. On the Chinese side, Zhou Enlai directed peace talks, and Li Kenong and Qiao Guanghua headed the negotiation team. Combat continued while the belligerents negotiated; the UN Command forces' goal was to recapture all of South KoreaSouth Korea officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Since the 21st century, South Korea has been renowned for its globally influential pop culture, particularly in music (K-pop), TV dramas (K-dramas) and cinema, a phenomenon referred to as the Korean wave. South Korea and to avoid losing territory. The PVA and the KPA attempted similar operations, and later effected military and psychological operations in order to test the United Nations (UN)United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmonizing the actions of nations. The UN was established after World War II with the aim of preventing future world wars, succeeding the League of Nations, which was characterized as ineffective.United Nations (UN) Command's resolve to continue the war.

The principal battles of the stalemate include:

• Battle of Bloody Ridge (18 August–15 September 1951)
• Battle of the Punchbowl (31 August-21 September 1951)
• Battle of Heartbreak Ridge (13 September–15 October 1951)
• Battle of Old Baldy (26 June–4 August 1952)
• Battle of White Horse (6–15 October 1952)
• Battle of Triangle Hill (14 October–25 November 1952)
• Battle of Hill Eerie (21 March–21 June 1952)
• Sieges of Outpost Harry (10–18 June 1953)
• Battle of the Hook (28–29 May 1953)
• Battle of Pork Chop Hill (23 March–16 July 1953)
• Battle of Kumsong (13–27 July 1953)

M46 tanks of the US Army 6th Tank Batallion, painted with tiger stripes and faces in order to frighten supposedly superstitious Chinese troops

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M46 tanks of the US Army 6th Tank Batallion, painted with tiger stripes and faces in order to frighten supposedly superstitious Chinese troops

( Click image to enlarge)

Chinese troops suffered from deficient military equipment, serious logistical problems, overextended communication and supply lines, and the constant threat of UN bombers. All of these factors generally led to a rate of Chinese casualties that was far greater than the casualties suffered by UN troops. The situation became so serious that, on November 1951, Zhou Enlai called a conference in Shenyang to discuss the PVA's logistical problems. At the meeting it was decided to accelerate the construction of railways and airfields in the area, to increase the number of trucks available to the army, and to improve air defense by any means possible. These commitments did little to directly address the problems confronting PVA troops.

ROK soldiers dumping expended 155mm shell casings

In the months after the Shenyang conference Peng Dehuai went to Beijing several times to brief Mao and Zhou about the heavy casualties suffered by Chinese troops and the increasing difficulty of keeping the front lines supplied with basic necessities. Peng was convinced that the war would be protracted, and that neither side would be able to achieve victory in the near future.

On 24 February 1952, the Military Commission, presided over by Zhou, discussed the PVA's logistical problems with members of various government agencies involved in the war effort. After the government representatives emphasized their inability to meet the demands of the war, Peng, in an angry outburst, shouted: "You have this and that problem... You should go to the front and see with your own eyes what food and clothing the soldiers have! Not to speak of the casualties! For what are they giving their lives? We have no aircraft. We have only a few guns. Transports are not protected. More and more soldiers are dying of starvation. Can't you overcome some of your difficulties?"

The atmosphere became so tense that Zhou was forced to adjourn the conference. Zhou subsequently called a series of meetings, where it was agreed that the PVA would be divided into three groups, to be dispatched to Korea in shifts; to accelerate the training of Chinese pilots; to provide more anti-aircraft guns to the front lines; to purchase more military equipment and ammunition from the Soviet UnionSoviet Union, officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. The Soviet Union fall process began with growing unrest in the Union's various constituent national republics developing into an incessant political and legislative conflict between them and the central government. Estonia was the first Soviet republic to declare state sovereignty inside the Union.Soviet Union; to provide the army with more food and clothing; and, to transfer the responsibility of logistics to the central government.

• Outline of the Korean War (1950-1953)
  

  HISTORIC BATTLES

  Korean War (1950-1953)

  The Korean War began when North Korea invaded South Korea. The United Nations, with the United States as the principal force, came to the aid of South Korea. China came to the aid of North Korea, and the Soviet Union gave some assistance. View Historic Battle »

  Background: In December 1945, Korea was administered by a U.S.-Soviet Union Joint Commission, as agreed at the Moscow Conference, with the aim of granting independence after a five-year trusteeship.

  Characteristics: The U.S. landings at Inchon on 15 September cut off the North Korean supply lines, causing their armored forces and infantry to run out of fuel, ammunition, and other supplies.

  Outbreak of war (1950): In April 1950, Stalin gave Kim permission to invade the South under the condition that Mao would agree to send reinforcements if they became needed. Stalin made it clear that Soviet forces would not openly engage in combat, to avoid a direct war with the Americans.

  United Nations response (July – August 1950): On Saturday, 24 June 1950, U.S. Secretary of State Dean Acheson informed President Truman that the North Koreans had invaded South Korea.

  Escalation (August – September 1950): In the resulting Battle of Pusan Perimeter (August–September 1950), the U.S. Army withstood KPA attacks meant to capture the city at the Naktong Bulge, P'ohang-dong, and Taegu.

  Battle of Inchon (September 1950): Against the rested and re-armed Pusan Perimeter defenders and their reinforcements, the KPA were undermanned and poorly supplied; unlike the UN Command, they lacked naval and air support.

  UN forces cross partition line (September – October 1950): The KPA's rapid withdrawal was strategic, with troops melting into the mountains from where they could launch guerrilla raids on the UN forces spread out on the coasts.

  China intervenes (October – December 1950): China warned that in safeguarding Chinese national security, they would intervene against the UN Command in Korea.

  Fighting around the 38th parallel (January – June 1951): UN forces retreated to Suwon in the west, Wonju in the center, and the territory north of Samcheok in the east, where the battlefront stabilized and held.

  Stalemate (July 1951 – July 1953): Large-scale bombing of North Korea continued, and protracted armistice negotiations began 10 July 1951 at Kaesong.

  Armistice (July 1953 – November 1954): The on-again, off-again armistice negotiations continued for two years, first at Kaesong, on the border between North and South Korea, and then at the neighbouring village of Panmunjom.

  Division of Korea (1954–present): The Korean Armistice Agreement provided for monitoring by an international commission. Since 1953, the Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission (NNSC), composed of members from the Swiss and Swedish Armed Forces, has been stationed near the DMZ.

RESOURCES
This article uses material from the Wikipedia article "Korean War", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.