To understand the context, we have to go back to 1910, when Korea was first annexed by the Empire of Japan.

Fast forward to the end of world war II, and after Japan’s surrender, it is forced to lose Korea. The United States and Soviet Union agree on a provisional partition of Korea through the 38th parallel. In the upper half, the Soviet Union established a communist regime, and in the southern half, the united states established an anti-communist regime.

But this isn’t the end of the story. North Korea wanted to unite the peninsula under a communist regime by invading South Korea. With the help of the Soviet Union and the newly-established Communist China, they launched their attack. South Korea was extremely close to being taken over, but with the help of the United States and The United Nations, they were able to take back most of the island. After 3 years of fighting, a ceasefire left the peninsula divided in two. To this day, this border remains the exact same.

#shorts #geography #funfacts