Eliot A. Cohen writes that the retreat from Chosin was a UN victory which inflicted such heavy losses on the PVA 9th Army that it was put out of action until March 1951. Paul M. Edwards, founder of the Center for the Study of the Korean War, draws parallels between the battle at Chosin and the Dunkirk evacuation. He writes that the retreat from Chosin following a "massive strategic victory" by the Chinese has been represented as "a moment of heroic history" for the UN forces. Appleman, on the other hand, questioned the necessity of a sea-borne evacuation to preserve the UN forces, asserting that X Corps had the strength to break out of the Chinese encirclement at Hungnam at the end of the battle. Chinese historian Li Xiaobing acknowledges X Corps' successful withdrawal from North Korea, and writes that the Battle of Chosin "has become a part of Marine lore, but it was still a retreat, not a victory." Bruce Cumings simply refers to the battle as a "terrible defeat" for the Americans.