<P> After the end of WWII in 1945 , the Allies divided the country into a northern area , protected by the Soviets , and a southern area protected primarily by the United States . In 1948 , when the powers failed to agree on the formation of a single government , this partition became the modern states of North and South Korea . The peninsula was divided at the 38th Parallel : the `` Republic of Korea '' was created in the south , with the backing of the US and Western Europe , and the `` Democratic People 's Republic of Korea '' in the north , with the backing of the Soviets and the communist People 's Republic of China . The new premier of North Korea , Kim il - Sung launched the Korean War in 1950 in an attempt to reunify the country under Communist rule . After immense material and human destruction , the conflict ended with a cease - fire in 1953 . The two nations officially remain at war because a peace treaty was never signed . Both states were accepted into the United Nations in 1991 . </P>
<P> After the end of WWII in 1945 , the Allies divided the country into a northern area , protected by the Soviets , and a southern area protected primarily by the United States . In 1948 , when the powers failed to agree on the formation of a single government , this partition became the modern states of North and South Korea . The peninsula was divided at the 38th Parallel : the `` Republic of Korea '' was created in the south , with the backing of the US and Western Europe , and the `` Democratic People 's Republic of Korea '' in the north , with the backing of the Soviets and the communist People 's Republic of China . The new premier of North Korea , Kim il - Sung launched the Korean War in 1950 in an attempt to reunify the country under Communist rule . After immense material and human destruction , the conflict ended with a cease - fire in 1953 . The two nations officially remain at war because a peace treaty was never signed . Both states were accepted into the United Nations in 1991 . </P>
when was the last time korea was united
when was the last time korea was united
in 1945
in 1945