<P> In April 1950, Stalin gave Kim permission to invade the South under the condition that Mao would agree to send reinforcements if needed . Stalin made it clear that Soviet forces would not openly engage in combat, to avoid a direct war with the United States . Kim met with Mao in May 1950 . Mao was concerned the U.S. would intervene but agreed to support the North Korean invasion . China desperately needed the economic and military aid promised by the Soviets . However, Mao sent more ethnic Korean PLA veterans to Korea and promised to move an army closer to the Korean border . Once Mao's commitment was secured, preparations for war accelerated . </P> <P> Soviet generals with extensive combat experience from the Second World War were sent to North Korea as the Soviet Advisory Group . These generals completed the plans for the attack by May . The original plans called for a skirmish to be initiated in the Ongjin Peninsula on the west coast of Korea . The North Koreans would then launch a counterattack that would capture Seoul and encircle and destroy the South Korean army . The final stage would involve destroying South Korean government remnants, capturing the rest of South Korea, including the ports . </P> <P> On 7 June 1950, Kim Il - sung called for a Korea - wide election on 5--8 August 1950 and a consultative conference in Haeju on 15--17 June 1950 . On 11 June, the North sent three diplomats to the South as a peace overture that Rhee rejected outright . On 21 June, Kim Il - Sung revised his war plan to involve a general attack across the 38th parallel, rather than a limited operation in the Ongjin peninsula . Kim was concerned that South Korean agents learned about the plans and South Korean forces were strengthening their defenses . Stalin agreed to this change of plan . </P> <P> While these preparations were underway in the North, there were frequent clashes along the 38th parallel, especially at Kaesong and Ongjin, many initiated by the South . The Republic of Korea Army (ROK Army) was being trained by the U.S. Korean Military Advisory Group (KMAG). On the eve of war, KMAG's commander General William Lynn Roberts voiced utmost confidence in the ROK Army and boasted that any North Korean invasion would merely provide "target practice". For his part, Syngman Rhee repeatedly expressed his desire to conquer the North, including when U.S. diplomat John Foster Dulles visited Korea on 18 June . </P>

Who lead north korea in the korean war