As the second World War came to an end, the once colonized Korea was split at the 38th parallel by allied forces. Less than five years after the split North Korean forces led by Kim-Il-Sung invaded the south. The UN headed by the United States responded with the first ever police action to combat the invading North Korean forces. Thus the world was once again plunged into pinnacle conflict that would set the tone for the second half of the 20th century. The Korean war, the Forgotten war, saw three years of heavy combat on the small Korean peninsula, ending in a stalemate and an armistice that still remains open today.