<P> The Korean conflict is based on the division between the Democratic People 's Republic of Korea in the north and the Republic of Korea in the south , both of which claim to be the government of the entire peninsula . During the Cold War , North Korea was backed by the Soviet Union , China , and other communist states , and South Korea was backed by the United States and its allies . The division of Korea occurred at the end of World War II in 1945 , and tensions erupted into the Korean War in 1950 . When the war ended , the country was devastated , but the division remained . North and South Korea continued a military standoff with periodic clashes . The cold civil war survived the collapse of the Eastern Bloc of 1989 to 1991 . </P>
what 's the beef between north and south korea
division between the Democratic People 's Republic of Korea in the north and the Republic of Korea in the south , both of which claim to be the government of the entire peninsula