Chapters 18-19 Summary and Analysis

In October 1950, Chinese Communist troops entered the Korean conflict. General Douglas MacArthur commanded the troops there and had disagreements with the people at the State Department. MacArthur's offensive was met by 300,000 Communist Chinese who caused the Americans to retreat. The Americans were trapped.

Acheson called on Kennan for help with the situation. Acheson was having problems with a Congress that wanted his resignation.

MacArthur wanted an all out offensive against the Chinese. The group at State tried to have MacArthur use caution in his public statements. There were more people, like Lovett, wanting MacArthur removed which soon happened.

Kennan, at this time, was enjoying academic life at Princeton. He accepted the position as Ambassador to the Soviet Union. He found Russian security tighter than it had been in the 1930s and 1940s. As a result of a comment in...