When war erupted on the Korean peninsula on June 25, 1950, China initially labeled it the ‘Korean War.’ However, as the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army began to intervene in the war by October of the same year, China officially referred to it as the ‘War to Resist U. S. Aggression and Aid Korea.’ To ‘Resist the United States’ (抗美) at the time represented the jingoistic slogan ‘Protect our homes and defend our country’ (保家衛國). ‘Aid Korea’ (援朝) stood for a slogan of internationalism to help the endangered brother country ‘Joseon.’ Nevertheless, from simply defending the home country, the War to Resist U. S. Aggression and Aid Korea transformed into a war involving major political, diplomatic and military matters for China such as modernizing the People’s Liberation Army, developing its domestic economy, utilizing mass mobilization and jingoism, and achieving the status of a power player in the world. For China, the War to Resist U. S. Aggression and Aid Korea was an all-out war that drew upon human, material and ideological support from all corners of the Chinese society. Such omnidirectional resistance against the United States and aid toward Korea was overseen by Zhou Enlai(周恩來), then Premier and first Foreign Minister of the People’s Republic of China, who was also the vice chairman of the Military Commission of the Central Committee. Zhou Enlai was at the center of China’s domestic and diplomatic affairs at the time. Hence, not only was he naturally involved in making policy decisions, but he was also involved in managing military affairs, for example, directing military operations, organizing the People’s Volunteer Army, procuring weapons and equipment and dispatching reinforcements. Zhou was the de facto leader responsible for handling many tasks related to the ‘War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea’ such as providing rear support and war supplies, dealing with internal political affairs or engaging in diplomatic negotiations and negotiations for an armistice agreement.
This paper first examines the rationale behind Zhou Enlai’s decision to go to war with the United States and dispatch the People’s Volunteer Army when he was well aware of the difficult military and economic circumstances China was facing in 1950 as a newly established nation. The paper thereafter reviews the movement to resist the United States and aid Korea, which was initiated to successfully intervene in the war. The entry of the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army into the war promoted China to become a savior of North Korea. However, China lost its opportunity with the United States to end the war early. As negotiations for an armistice agreement prolonged, North Korea wished to immediately cease fire after installing the military demarcation line because it had been gravely suffering from human and material damages. Meanwhile, China ignored North Korea’s wishes and continued to engage in combat to gain an advantage in the negotiations. When talks reached a standstill while discussing a system to repatriate prisoners of war, a stalemate of two years went by ‘negotiating on the one hand and battling on the other,’ which led to brutal outcomes of war.
When the armistice agreement was finally signed in July 1953, Zhou Enlai deemed it as a victory for China from successfully pressuring the United States into signing the agreement. Zhou intended to boost the confidence and self-esteem of the Chinese people by stressing that imperialistic forces would not be able to easily attempt an invasion of China since the myth had been broken that defying American imperialism shall fail. Yet, China no longer persisted in resisting the United States and supporting Korea as it did in the 1950s for the purpose of defending the home country. China’s attitude toward Korea regarding the Korean War seems to be changing rapidly as of late with Chinese President Xi Jinping expressing gratitude to Korea for returning the remains of Chinese soldiers who fought in the Korean War. With this recent return of remains, China is on its way to making progress with Korea on clearing out legacies of the Korean War. As a country that was at the center of developments in the Korean War and its armistice agreement, China should continue to cooperate with Korea to peacefully resolve issues concerning the armistice agreement that still remain.