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Was The Division Of The Korean Peninsula In 1945 Inevitable?

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Was The Division Of The Korean Peninsula In 1945 Inevitable?
Was the division of Korean Peninsula in 1945 inevitable? This is a very complex question that we have to take a look from different sides to make a clear judgement on. It was not just one event that led to the division of Korean; there were multiple events led to the division of Korea such as the Japanese invasion and intervention of more powerful states during World War II. These series of event of eventually led the division and some of the events were not avoidable. Based on this reasoning, I think the division of the Korean Peninsula in 1945 was not inevitable.
One of the most important aspect that led to other countries intervening in Korea is the geography. Korea’s placement in geography is very advantageous; it holds key strategic interests …show more content…
One of the first events would be the Russo-Japanese war which led to the annexation of Korea. I believe this event played a huge role in the division of the Korean Peninsula. When it was annexed, Japan completely took over Korea and brutally ruled over Korea for 35 years. At times, Korea was used as a pawn by powerful countries in order to bargain and appease. The Japanese control over Korea later gave rise to Kim Il Sung as well. Kim Il Sung had power and had support due to Japan unfairly ruling over Korea. The citizens of Korea who opposed the Japanese control rallied behind Kim Il Sung. If Japan never had control over Korea and Korea was left alone, Kim Il Sung would not have had a cause to go after and he would not have had overwhelming support that led to North Korea being …show more content…
On November 1943, during the Cairo Conference Roosevelt, Churchill, Chiang Kai-shek decided that they eventually wanted to see Korean free after the surrender of Japan. They wanted to give back all the territories wrongfully seized by Japan to their rightful owners; one of which included Korea “The three great powers, mindful of the enslavement of the people of Korea, are determined that in due course Korea shall become free and independent” (Lee). While their initial intentions were good; it did not really work out as they hoped due to the fact these states had their own
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