Looking back, Truman's words leave little doubt that he knew we were fighting a proxy war with the Soviet Union in Korea. In 1951, the Korean war was officially seen as a civil war between North and South Korea, even while it was known that the Soviet Union was providing material support. But the actual participation of Soviet pilots wasn't made public until the late 1970's. It is now believed that in 1952, 26,000 Soviet people and 321 aircraft were serving in Korea. The planes bore Chinese insignia, and the pilots carried Chines uniforms and Chinese documents to conceal their true identity.
President Truman did not declare war with the Soviet Union in Korea, but he very clearly identified them as the enemy. Here are some of his words delivered to congress in 1951:
"As we meet here today, American soldiers are fighting a bitter campaign in Korea. We pay tribute to their courage, devotion, and gallantry.Our men are fighting, alongside their United Nations allies, because they know, as we do, that the aggression in Korea is part of the attempt of the Russian Communist dictatorship to take over the world, step by step.Our men are fighting a long way from home, but they are fighting for our lives and our liberties. They are fighting to protect our right to meet here today--our right to govern ourselves as a free nation.The threat of world conquest by Soviet Russia endangers our liberty and endangers the kind of world in which the free spirit of man can survive. This threat is aimed at all peoples who strive to win or defend their own freedom and national independence.The present rulers of the Soviet Union have shown that they are willing to use this power to destroy the free nations and win domination over the whole world. The Soviet imperialists have two ways of going about their destructive work. They use the method of subversion and internal revolution, and they use the method of external aggression. In preparation for either of these methods of attack, they stir up class strife and disorder. They encourage sabotage. They put out poisonous propaganda. They deliberately try to prevent economic improvement."
Peace through strength, military build-up, proxy wars. It was a different Democratic party back then. Interestingly congress never declared war on North Korea. Rather, the United Nations passed resolution 82 condemning North Korea. In 1951, Truman signed the Mutual Security Act, stating that the U.S. would provide military aid to 'free peoples' around the world. The U.N. authorized the use of military force in Korea, but congress never authorized war. It was the United Nations fighting the Soviet Union, not America at war with North Korea.
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