Korean+Conflict+History

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[] = **History of Korea ** = By Alex Barnes Korea is a small peninsula south of China. At the end of World War II, Japan was forced to surrender the land after controlling it for more than three decades. The United States was put in charge of southern Korea, while the Soviet Union was put in charge of the north [NK Info]. Because of the differences between the communist Soviet Union and the democratic United states, Korea became divided. After this, huge conflicts started that still take place today.

After years of fighting between the two countries, people started calling North Korea "heaven on Earth" [Japan], however the reality was the complete opposite. Over the next ten years, almost one hundred thousand people immigrated into North Korea. Most of these people were later sent to labor camps where they died of starvation, lack of medical care and physical abuse [NK Info]. These labor camps were surprisingly similar to the Nazi concentration camps that were used during World War II [Rigoulot]. =Timeline of Korea = 
 * 1910 - Japan annexes Korea [Conflict]  
 * 1945 - End of World War II; Soviet Union controls northern section, United States controls southern section [Conflict]
 * 1945 - Korea splits into North and South Korea [Conflict]
 * 1950 - North Korea invades South Korea in an attempt to unite countries under one communist rule [Conflict]
 * 1951 - United Nations forces help South Korea in the beginning of the Korean War <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; vertical-align: super;">[Conflict]
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">1953 - An armistice is declared <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; vertical-align: super;">[Conflict]
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">1960 - General Park Chung-hee becomes president of South Korea after a military coup <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; vertical-align: super;">[Conflict]
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">1972 - North and South Korea agree to unify, but nothing results from this agreement <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; vertical-align: super;">[Conflict]
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">1990 - Peace talks in Seoul take place, where a number of agreements are made <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; vertical-align: super;">[Conflict]
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">1997 - Kim Jong-il takes power over North Korea <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; vertical-align: super;">[NK 08/09] <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; vertical-align: super;">
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">2000 - Agreement is made to allow families split between borders to reunite <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; vertical-align: super;">[Conflict]
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">2000 - A railroad is built across the border of North and South Korea <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; vertical-align: super;">[Conflict]
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">2002 - President George W. Bush asserts North Korea has weapons of mass destruction; Kim Jong-il interprets this as a declaration of war <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; vertical-align: super;">[Conflict]
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">2003 - North Korea renounces the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; vertical-align: super;">[Conflict]
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">2005 - North Korea refuses to accept foreign aid <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; vertical-align: super;">[Conflict]
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">2006 - North Korea conducts nuclear weapons testing; United Nations passes sanctions against North Korea to prevent trade <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; vertical-align: super;">[Conflict]
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">2009 - North and South Korean naval vessels clash in oceans, caused by misunderstanding of border <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; vertical-align: super;">[Renner]