The Korean War started when North Korea invaded South Korea on 25 June 1950.
In April 1950, the Russian leader, Stalin, gave the North Korean leader, Kim II Sung, permission to attack the Korean government in the South under the condition that the Chinese leader, Mao, would agree to send reinforcements if needed.
(Kim II Sung was a Major in the Red Army before he became the North Korean president.)
Kim met with Mao in May 1950.
Once Mao’s commitment was secured, preparations for war accelerated.
Soviet generals with extensive combat experience from the Second World War were sent to North Korea as the Soviet Advisory Group. These generals completed the plans for the attack by May.
The United Nations Security Council denounced North Korea’s actions as an invasion and authorized the formation of the United Nations Command and the dispatch of forces to Korea to repel it.
It ended with an armistice on 27 July 1953.
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