An event to console the families of American soldiers missing in action and prisoners of war during the 1950-53 Korean War at a hotel in Washington on Aug. 10, 2017. The U.S. Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) and South Korea’s veterans affairs ministry co-organized the event. (Photo courtesy of DPAA) (Yonhap)
Lt. Gen. Thomas Bergeson, commander of the U.S. 7th Air Force and deputy commander of the United Nations Command Korea (UNC), speaks during a UNC-hosted ceremony at the truce village of Panmunjom on July 27, 2017, to mark the 64th anniversary of the armistice that ended the 1950-53 Korean War. (Yonhap)
During a recent interview with Defense Secretary James Mattis conducted by a high school journalism student; Secretary Mattis recommended that people read a 2013 article in the Atlantic by James Wright that discusses what was learned from the Korean War. The main point the article makes is that the Korean War began a trend of the US becoming involved in military conflicts before settling on political objectives:
Korea established a pattern that has been unfortunately followed in American wars in Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan. These are wars without declaration and without the political consensus and the resolve to meet specific and changing goals. They are improvisational wars. They are dangerous.
The wars of the last 63 years, ranging from Korea to Vietnam to Afghanistan to Iraq (but excepting Operation Desert Storm, which is an outlier from this pattern) have been marked by:
Inconsistent or unclear military goals with no congressional declaration of war.
Early presumptions on the part of the civilian leadership and some top military officials that this would be an easy operation. An exaggerated view of American military strength, a dismissal of the ability of the opposing forces, and little recognition of the need for innovation.
Military action that, except during the first year in Korea, largely lacked geographical objectives of seize and hold.
Military action with restricted rules of engagement and political constraints on the use of a full arsenal of firepower.
Military action against enemy forces that have sanctuaries which are largely off-limits.
Military action that is rhetorically in defense of democracy–ignoring the reality of the undemocratic nature of regimes in Seoul, Saigon, Baghdad, and Kabul.
With the exception of some of the South Korean and South Vietnamese military units, these have been wars with in-country allies that were not dependable.
Military action that civilian leaders modulate, often clumsily, between domestic political reassurance and international muscle-flexing. Downplaying the scale of deployment and length of commitment for the domestic audience and threatening expansion of these for the international community.
Wars fought by increasingly less representative sectors of American society, which further encourages most Americans to pay little attention to the details of these encounters.
Military action that is costly in lives and treasure and yet does not enjoy the support that wars require in a democracy. [The Atlantic]
The evacuation of Hungnam during the Korean War is a well known event, but I will have to read up more about Colonel Edward Forney’s part in the evacuation when I have the time:
The descendants of U.S. Marine Corps Colonel Edward Forney who helped evacuate about 100-thousand Koreans during the Korean War visited South Korea on Thursday.
The First Marine Division announced on Friday that it invited Forney’s granddaughter Alice Krug and great-grandson Ben Forney to mark June, which is the Month of Patriots and Veterans.
The two guests viewed a road named after Forney inside the unit in Pohang on the southeastern coast and an exhibition hall honoring his achievements.
Forney is considered to be a war hero because he persuaded then Commanding General of the U.S. X Corps, Edward Almond, to evacuate roughly 100-thousand refugees during the Hungnam evacuation in December 1950 from North Korea to the South.
He stayed on for three years after the war to serve as a senior adviser for South Korea’s Marine Corps. [KBS World Radio]
The U.S. has an enduring friendship with a democratic South Korea, forged by the sacrifices of those who served in the ‘Forgotten War.’ pic.twitter.com/qTiXrBcG2n
This makes you wonder how many more US soldiers are still buried under the ground in South Korea waiting to be found?:
A fallen soldier from the Korean War passes the colors one last time in South Korea during a repatriation ceremony at Yongsan Garrison, South Korea, Thursday, June 22, 2017.
A U.S. soldier’s body is heading home 67 years after he went missing in action during the Korean War.
The U.S. accepted the remains of the 1st Cavalry Division soldier Thursday during a repatriation ceremony hosted by the South Korean military and United Nations Command at Yongsan Garrison. UN colors draped his casket, which stood alone on the ceremonial field.
The soldier is thought to have died in late July 1950 when U.S. forces, including elements of the 1st Cavalry Division, delayed the North Korean army’s advance along the peninsula and bought time for the U.N. to establish a line of defense around the southern city of Busan. [Stars & Stripes]
You can read more at the link, but the body was found this past March by a telecom worker installing cables under a road. Hopefully the body is quickly identified and returned to surviving family members.
An exhibition on Turkish soldiers who took part in the 1950-53 Korean War opens at the War Memorial Hall in Seoul on June 2, 2017, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries. The event, jointly arranged by the hall and the Turkish Embassy, runs through Aug. 1. About 15,000 Turkish soldiers fought for South Korea against North Korea under the U.N. flag during the war. Of them, 765 were killed in action and 2,147 wounded. (Photo courtesy of War Memorial Hall) (Yonhap)
A true hero of the Korean War Colonel Dean Hess has been honored with a memorial in Jeju:
South Korea has set up a monument to honor a late U.S. airman for his contributions during the 1950-53 Korean War, the military said Thursday.
The monument was unveiled in a ceremony at the Jeju Aerospace Museum on the country’s southern resort island of Jeju to remember Col. Dean E. Hess, called the “father of war orphans” and trainer of South Korean pilots during the war, the Air Force said in a statement.
The monument honoring Col. Dean E. Hess (Courtesy of the Air Force) (Yonhap)
In December 1950, Col. Hess helped evacuate about 1,000 war orphans from Seoul to the southern island using 15 C-54 transport aircraft operated by the U.S. Air Force. He also helped build a local orphanage for the children who lost their parents, the Air Force said.
Some 200 government and military officials, war veteran pilots and former war orphans paid tribute to the late U.S. airman.
U.S. Forces Korea Deputy Commander Lt. Gen. Thomas W. Bergeson and Larry Hess, the eldest son of the late U.S. pilot, also took part in the ceremony, it said. [Yonhap]
Hannah Kim poses with a Korean War veteran at a Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., on Memorial Day last year. [HANNAH KIM]Hannah Kim, a former spokeswoman of former U.S. representative Charles Rangel, plans to meet with Korean War veterans worldwide to collect historical data.
The 33-year-old former spokesperson plans to visit 16 countries that sent troops to Korea during the Korean War, and another five countries that gave medical support. She will travel for four months, starting this month. She plans to make video and audio recordings of those who participated in the war so young people in Korea and abroad can learn from them.
Rangel, who is also a Korean War veteran, was one of the key congressmen that helped pass many resolutions and bills related to Korea, such as the Korean War Veterans Memorial Wall of Remembrance. Rangel retired from politics last month.
“I became interested in Korean War veterans after helping Congressman Charles Rangel’s schedules related to the Korean War,” Kim said. “I thought that our generation needs to keep records of the veterans across the world while they are still alive.” [Joong Ang Ilbo]
You can read more at the link, but interviewing Korean War veterans from other nations outside the US that participated in the conflict should be interesting for her. I always find it interesting to learn more about the experiences of non-US troops during the war from putting together my ongoing Heroes of the Korean War series.
The monument honoring Col. Dean E. Hess (Courtesy of the Air Force) (Yonhap)
