On June 27, 1950, President Harry S. Truman announced he is ordering U.S.
air and naval forces to South Korea to aid the democratic nation in repulsing
an invasion by communist North Korea. The United States was undertaking
the major military operation, he explained, to enforce a United Nations
resolution calling for an end to hostilities, and to stem the spread of
communism in Asia. In addition to ordering U.S. forces to Korea, Truman
also deployed the U.S. 7th Fleet to Formosa (Taiwan) to guard against
invasion by communist China and ordered an acceleration of military aid
to French forces fighting communist guerrillas in Vietnam.
Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884 – December 26, 1972)