The heavens start from Changjin Lake

Chapter 895 MacArthur's Thoughts

But Secretary of State Acheson strongly opposed it.

He said: The United States should not only focus on the local interests of the Korean Peninsula, but also ignore the interests of the United States in the global strategy. If Truman approved Chiang Kai-shek's military dispatch, it would likely anger China, a country with a large population, and trigger a new war.

At that time, the United States will have to deal with wars in two regions at the same time while far away from its homeland.

Acheson also quoted an ancient Chinese proverb - He who chases two rabbits is unlikely to catch one - to explain why he opposed Chiang Kai-shek's participation in the war.

Acheson's view made sense, so Truman decided to put the dispute aside and discuss it next time.

There was no result on Truman's side.

However, after MacArthur, who was inspecting South Korea, saw the tragic situation of the South Korean army, he sent another telegram urging Truman to agree to arrange for Chiang's army to enter North Korea as soon as possible. However, Acheson withheld MacArthur's telegram without authorization.

There were two diametrically opposed views in the military and political circles of the United States, and Truman was torn between them. For this reason, he summoned Gu Weijun and Hu Shi to the White House to listen to their opinions.

Soon after, MacArthur sent another telegram urging him to do so, and sent his Air Force Chief of Staff Vandenberg back to Washington in person to present his opinions to Truman in person.

Truman then convened another meeting to discuss whether to approve Chiang Kai-shek's army to enter North Korea.

The US military representatives headed by Johnson, Bradley and Collins all agreed to use Chiang Kai-shek's 52nd Army. They believed that this would not only stabilize the war situation as quickly as possible, but also reduce US casualties and enable the US ground forces to be used in other more important places in an emergency - Europe.

However, Acheson still firmly opposed it.

Acheson said: "If Chiang Kai-shek's army enters North Korea to attack the North Korean Communist Army, there is no doubt that the Chinese Communist Party will retaliate with double the force. In that case, the Korean War will immediately expand and the situation will inevitably be difficult to control. As a result, not only will the United States be deeply involved, but our allies will also be scared away."

"This has worldwide implications, and we must consider the possibility that this move will divide countries in the United Nations that share our position, leading to the isolation of the United States."

"Commonwealth countries may not be able to accept the fact that their troops are fighting side by side with Chiang's army. Our leadership in the Far East is being seriously weakened in the United Nations. We must be extremely careful to avoid splitting our alliance camp in the organization."

Faced with Acheson's firm opposition, Truman finally decided not to let Chiang Kai-shek's army go to war.

When the news reached Tokyo, MacArthur was very dissatisfied and US Secretary of Defense Johnson announced his resignation. For a time, Acheson became the focus of criticism from the US Congress and the American public.

Chiang Kai-shek, who was occupying the isolated island, was also very angry about this. He scolded the Truman administration in front of everyone, saying that it was repeating Chamberlain's tricks and that they would sooner or later pay the price for their stupid behavior.

Although MacArthur was dissatisfied, he had no choice but to integrate the existing forces and prepare for war.

Soon after this incident, some parties mistakenly tried to introduce some additional reasons to explain why the proposal for Chiang Kai-shek's support was not accepted.

Some false statements claim that the value of Chiang Kai-shek's army is questionable because they are not only over-age and poorly trained, but also have questionable loyalty and are likely to turn against the Chinese army as soon as they come into contact with it.

During his visit to Taiwan, MacArthur had the opportunity to inspect Chiang Kai-shek's army and was left with a clear impression.

That is, they are well-equipped, well-trained, and have overall qualities comparable to those of Chinese soldiers. They all voluntarily joined Chiang's army and are naturally trustworthy. They will undoubtedly be a fierce force in battle.

The member governments of the United Nations all refused to use the volunteer reinforcements provided by Chiang Kai-shek's army, and no other party could provide significant reinforcements in the short term.

MacArthur could do nothing about it and could only curse those bastards in Washington in his heart.

However, what made him even more angry was that he allowed the Eighth Army to stabilize a position in central Korea, which was fatally affected by the gradual deterioration of the enemy's supply line capabilities.

Walker's skillful retreat was so rapid that many ignorant reporters described the troops as fleeing in panic. Nothing could be further from the truth. The troops were well organized, the various units were closely coordinated, and their morale was high and in good condition.

After completing the task of covering Walker's right wing and preventing it from being encircled by the enemy, the Tenth Army, in accordance with MacArthur's instructions, retreated by sea and joined the Eighth Army in Busan.

Almond's 1st Marine Division and the 2nd and 7th Infantry Divisions successfully blocked three Chinese armies, and the evacuation of Hungnam was a classic example of combat.

This action was achieved through the unparalleled coordination of the army, navy and air force. MacArthur also received many congratulatory messages from home for his retreat in the second battle.

There were letters from President Truman, Secretary of War Pace, Army Chief of Staff Collins, and Chief of Naval Operations Sherman.

"The Tenth Army was successfully evacuated from Hungnam by air and sea, along with 12 tons of supplies and equipment, leaving the enemy empty-handed," Almond wrote in his December 24 report. "35 troops, including South Korean troops, and approximately 10.5 refugees were successfully evacuated to safe points within South Korea."

"Any buildings that could be used for military purposes by the enemy have been destroyed. The enemy tried to interfere with our military operations and paid a heavy price for it."

"Relatively speaking, our army's losses were relatively light."

Looking at the report written by Almond, MacArthur standing on the deck looked relieved. He believed that his troops had broken free from the Communist army's clutches, escaped from danger, and successfully saved the lives of 100,000 people, and did not disappoint the soldiers' trust in him.

This was a great comfort to MacArthur, who had suffered a series of defeats.

Until now, the basic policies and decisions that have constrained the United Nations forces in fighting the North Korean army are still valid, but the situation has changed dramatically and this is no longer a simple war.

It's a whole new war.

MacArthur returned to his residence and wrote on a piece of paper: "We are facing China's almost unlimited military potential. After half a century of war, I am shocked by their potential. Right now, I need not only more troops, more equipment and more supplies, but also precise policies to adapt to the new situation. However, Washington is once again hesitant and does not know what to do."

As he wrote this, he was filled with worry.

If he loses the war, it will directly affect his reputation at home.

The telegram sent to MacArthur by the Joint Chiefs of Staff made him even more worried: "From all aspects of the assessment, if China decides to expel the UN forces from the Korean Peninsula, they have the ability to do so. All we can do is make the enemy pay a high price for every step forward, and perhaps the enemy will give up."

"Another option is to massively increase troops to the UN forces in Korea, but this would seriously jeopardize other missions, including the defense of Japan. It is unrealistic to get a sizable reinforcement from other UN member states. I don't think Korea is the place to fight a major battle."

"With the threat of all-out war looming, it is even more important to avoid using the remaining available ground forces to confront Chinese forces on the Korean Peninsula."

Seeing this, MacArthur's heart was lifted.

He was well aware that the United States valued its interests in Europe more than in the Far East.

The Soviet Union has not yet joined the war, but China alone is forcing them to increase their military presence, and the situation will become even more difficult.

Especially at this moment when the focus of the Soviet Union is on Europe, while they increase their military strength, they will weaken their troops stationed in other places.

Without the restraint of the United States, the Soviet Union will become more unscrupulous in Europe.

This may be the situation that the Soviet Union wants to see, but it is definitely not the situation that the United States wants to see.

“However, if we can successfully resist the aggression of China and North Korea on the Korean Peninsula with relatively small losses, thereby weakening China’s military and political prestige on the Korean Peninsula, it will be of great significance to our national interests.”

"In view of the current situation, the basic instructions given to you before must be adjusted. Now you should take Japan as the primary consideration as well as the threat, implement a series of defensive positions, and determine an appropriate time in advance so that our troops can finally withdraw in an orderly manner."

"We all agree that if you retreat from your defense line roughly east of the Jinjiang River to a position near the river, and the Chinese Communist Party launches a massive attack there with enough momentum to drive the UN forces out of the Korean Peninsula, then you must be ordered to retreat to Japan. In view of the above situation, we will be forced to make a decision to withdraw!"

"Especially considering that you still have to fulfill your primary mission of defending Japan, and only Eighth Army troops are available, we need to know your opinion."

Flip open the back.

Gone.

MacArthur dropped the message.

This telegram has shown that the authorities have completely lost their will to win the Korean issue. President Truman was once determined to liberate this threatened land and reunify it.

However, the original vow of unwavering determination has almost transformed into surrender.

Washington's planning is not about how to fight back, but about the best way to escape.

The authorities did not consider the issue of reinforcements, or even whether to use Chiang Kai-shek's army, and did not offer any solution. Washington simply placed unrealistic hopes on these soldiers who had already fought and won a battle and were now struggling to survive in another war of a much larger scale.

MacArthur believed that it was impossible to expect these soldiers to perform miracles.

After these two battles, he had seen that there was a huge gap between their soldiers and Chinese soldiers.

The most incredible thing is that the Eighth Army was already overwhelmed by the Chinese army with huge military superiority, but Washington still wanted to count on the Eighth Army to take on the additional responsibility of Japan's defense when the Soviet Union intervened.

MacArthur really wanted to split open the heads of those politicians in Washington to see if there were any brains inside.

He called Washington back to say that everything was going well on the Korean battlefield, and that it was just a matter of saving his face.

Otherwise, the media will make a big fuss and exaggerate the situation, and the public opinion storm may affect his influence in the United States. Washington actually doesn't understand. Does he have to make his words clear?
What's more, MacArthur never considered that Korea would end in defeat.

As a newly established country, it had a weak industrial base and backward weapons and equipment. Even its airplanes were antiques from the last century, not to mention their powerful ships and guns. It would not be an exaggeration to say that they were just a bunch of fishing boats.

How could this war be lost!
MacArthur always believed that if he could remove the restrictions imposed on him by Washington and allow him to unleash his full military strength, he would not only be able to save South Korea, but also deal a devastating blow to the newly established country, completely destroying its ability to launch an aggressive war and preventing it from posing a threat to peace in Asia for generations to come.

He even thought arrogantly.

Turn this newly established country into Japan.

In response to the telegram sent to him by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, MacArthur thought about it for a night and responded to the issue of withdrawal from North Korea.

"As for the current situation, we have clearly seen that all of China's military resources and its logistical support from the Soviet Union have been used to the greatest extent to fight against the UN forces. For this reason, a large number of Chinese troops have been assembled in the northeastern region of the Sino-North Korean border. This will lead to certain areas in China gradually becoming empty of defense due to the withdrawal of troops to support operations in North Korea."

"At the same time, under the current restrictions, our naval and air forces have only been partially deployed."

"The huge potential of Chiang Kai-shek's army in Taiwan and the guerrilla activities that still exist in China have also been ignored. All these circumstances show that the advantage lies with us. China's strength will only reach its peak in the initial period. When the ice and snow melt in the spring of next year, our mechanized forces will have a strong assault capability."

MacArthur proposed several targeted actions.

(1) Blockade of China’s coastal areas.

(2) Use naval gunfire or air force bombing to destroy China’s industrial production capacity for war.

(3) If we are determined to continue fighting for this peninsula, we must mobilize Chiang Kai-shek’s garrison troops in Taiwan to reinforce our military presence in Korea.

(4) Remove existing restrictions imposed on Taiwan’s garrison forces, allowing them to carry out diversionary activities and perhaps even counterattack China’s weakly defended areas!
"I believe that the above measures can seriously paralyze and basically eliminate China's ability to launch an aggressive war and prevent Asia from being swallowed up! And I think this can be achieved with only a small part of our overall military strength."

"There is no doubt that this action can immediately relieve the pressure on our troops in North Korea. At that time, we can decide whether to continue fighting in the area or make strategic adjustments to our troops to strengthen our defense along the coastal island chain!"

MacArthur wrote a lot, including his thoughts on the Korean War, and sent them to the Chief of Staff for a liaison meeting, and then waited for a reply.