The involvement of the two German states in Korea during the 1950s in the context of the Cold War
This master thesis will analyze the background of the involvement of the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the German Democratic Republic (GDR) in Korea during the 1950s in the context of the Cold War. In both Korean states, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) as well as the Republic of Korea (ROK), the so-called humanitarian aid that was provided to them in the form of medical and economic assistance to help surmount the hardship of the postwar period is remembered with great appreciation to this day. However, critical views on the German engagement in Korea are still relatively hard to find. In this paper, two exemplary cases will be studied: the GDR’s city reconstruction project in the North Korean cities of Hamheung and Heungnam and the FRG’s medical assistance to the ROK by means of the West German Red Cross Hospital in Busan. By looking at primary sources like governmental documents, this thesis will examine the geopolitical conditions and particular national interests that stood behind the German development and humanitarian aid for the Korean states at that time, thus shedding light on the political goals the two German states pursued, and the benefit they expected to derive from their engagement in Korea. Sources consulted include primary archival materials, secondary sources like monographs, journal articles, contemporary newspaper articles, and interviews with contemporary witnesses.
Cold War, GDR, West Germany, FRG, North Korea, DPRK, South Korea, ROK, Korean War, Red Cross, Humanitarian aid, Kalter Krieg, Deutschland, Korea, Ostdetuschland, DDR, Westdeutschland, BRD, Nordkorea, KVDR, Südkorea, Republik Korea, Koreakrieg, Humanitäre Hilfe, East Germany, Germany
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