h. The UN. forces received little resistance and the remaining North Korean troops were seen crossing the Yalu River into China.16 With a hope to overtake some of the retreating North Korean troops, MacArthur ordered the UN. forces to move north to the Manchurian border between China and North Korea. This command was in direct defiance of presidential orders, because encroaching on the Chinese border could cause China or Russia to enter the war.17 Yet, MacArthur dismissed the threat, and pushed forward. China feared the UN. would attack them, and they needed to protect valuable hydroelectric power plants on the Yalu River. They massed 300,000 Chinese soldiers on the Manchurian border to wait for the UN. to arrive. On November 8, 1950, the UN. troops moved deeper into the mountainous Manchurian region. The Chinese troops lay coiled like a viper, and as the UN. pushed forward, they encountered "Human Waves" of Chinese troops.18 Combined with poor equipment and the brutal North Korean winter, the UN. forces had no choice but to retreat. The allies retreated back 130 miles to the North Korean border. Along with the UN. retreat, followed millions of North Korean refugees trying to escape China’s assault. The situation was described by one G.I., "There were literally millions of North Korean refugees blocking the roads by sheer mass, the silent columns moving without hope, shelter or food, avoiding other's tragedies of death, loss of total possessions. There were those who simply sank to the ground, too tired and defeated to move, the tossing of babies, born on their mothers' backs and now frozen to death".19 As the UN. forces moved out of the Manchurian region, the U.S. air force and special forces were called to the task. They pounded the advancing Chinese troops with missiles, and made the already treacherous mountain roads even more dangerous. Yet, the sheer numbers of the Chinese troops overpowered the obstacles in their way. All a...
