page_title: Battle of Pusan Perimeter
section_title: Eastern corridor
hierarchical_section_title: Battle of Pusan Perimeter / August push / Eastern corridor
caption_attribution_description: English: Map of the Battle of P'ohang-dong
context_page_description: The Battle of the Pusan Perimeter was a large-scale battle between United Nations Command and North Korean forces lasting from August 4 to September 18, 1950. It was one of the first major engagements of the Korean War. An army of 140,000 UN troops, having been pushed to the brink of defeat, were rallied to make a final stand against the invading Korean People's Army, 98,000 men strong.
  UN forces, having been repeatedly defeated by the advancing KPA, were forced back to the "Pusan Perimeter", a 140-mile defensive line around an area on the southeastern tip of South Korea that included the port of Busan. The UN troops, consisting mostly of forces from the Republic of Korea Army, United States, and United Kingdom, mounted a last stand around the perimeter, fighting off repeated KPA attacks for six weeks as they were engaged around the cities of Daegu, Masan, and Pohang and the Nakdong River. The massive KPA assaults were unsuccessful in forcing the UN troops back further from the perimeter, despite two major pushes in August and September.
context_section_description: The terrain along the ROK front on the eastern corridor made movement extremely difficult. A major road ran from Taegu 50 miles (80 km) east, to P'ohang-dong on Korea's east coast. The only major north-south road intersecting this line moved south from Andong through Yongch'on, midway between Taegu and P'ohang-dong. The only other natural entry through the line was at the town of An'gang-ni, 12 miles (19 km) west of P'ohang-dong, situated near a valley through the natural rugged terrain to the major rail hub of Kyongju, which was a staging post for moving supplies to Taegu. Walker chose not to heavily reinforce the area as he felt the terrain made meaningful attack impossible, preferring to respond to attack with reinforcements from the transportation routes and air cover from Yongil Airfield, which was south of P'ohang-dong.
caption: South Korean units push North Korean forces northward after intense fighting, August 11–20.
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