ABSTRACT

This book explores Soviet–North Korean relations during the Cold War (1945–1991).

Based on many primary documents and sources (including Russian and Korean), it reveals how the influence of the Soviets on Pyongyang diminished during the course of the Cold War, from overwhelming at the time of the foundation of North Korea to negligible at the time of the collapse of the USSR. The book delves into the early history and foundation of North Korea, the August Plenum and the strategy employed by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) in the Sino-Soviet split. It covers topics previously neglected in previous studies on North Korea, such as the preparation and waging of the Korean War, Kim Il-sung’s road to political independence, the widespread mockery of North Korean propaganda by Soviet citizens and the Soviet origins of the design of the North Korean flag.

This book will be a valuable resource to students and scholars of North Korea, Russian Studies, the Cold War and Communism.

chapter 1|9 pages

The Beginning

Captain Kim I1-sung of the Red Army

chapter 2|7 pages

The Week That Reshaped East Asia

The Soviet-Japanese War of 1945

chapter 3|8 pages

The Soviet Governors of North Korea

Ivan Chistyakov and Terentiy Shtykov

chapter 4|9 pages

Kim Il-sung's Rise to Power

How a Junior Officer Ended up Leading a Nation

chapter 5|14 pages

The North Korean Flag and Other Symbols

Made in the USSR

chapter 6|5 pages

The Korean People's Army

Forged in the Soviet Image

chapter 8|8 pages

The Famine of 1954–55

A Forgotten Tragedy

chapter 9|34 pages

The Last Days of Summer

The Story of the August Plenum

chapter 11|10 pages

Stalinism and Kimilsungism

A Comparison

chapter 12|10 pages

Playing Scylla and Charybdis

North Korea and the Sino-Soviet Split

chapter 14|11 pages

The Father State Dies

North Korea and the End of the Soviet Union