Foreign Relations of the United States, 1951, Korea and China, Volume VII, Part 1

Lot 55D128: Black Book, Tab 3: Telegram

The Commander in Chief, Far East (Ridgway) to the Joint Chiefs of Staff

secret
flash

Tokyo, 24 August 1951—9:55 p. m.

CX–69566. This message in four parts and part 4 requests instructions.

Part 1. There follows the English text of a letter delivered to Lt Col Lee, United Nations Command Delegation Liaison Officer at Pan Mun Jom, 241100–K, August 1951. The text of this letter is identical with the English Morse broadcast from Peiping Radio made earlier the same day:

“Aug 23, 1951, General M B Ridgway: Before the blood of our brave fighter, Platoon Commander Yao Ching-Hsiang sacrificed under the unlawful murder by your armed personnel could dry, aircraft of your side further unlawfully intruded into the air above the conference site area in the Kaesong neutral zone at 2220 hrs, Aug 22, to carry out bombing and strafing with the residence of our delegation as tgt. Although filled with the utmost indignation, our delegation still notified your side at 2235 hrs, Aug 22, to send over your personnel to conduct an investigation, in order to make known the facts of this incident to the whole world and to deprive your side of all pretexts to attribute the incident to accidental causes. The Liaison Officers sent by your side saw with their own eyes the craters and shrapnel left by the bombs dropped by your acft and the evidences that the bombs were dropped only a few hours ago, and could not but keep silent. As a matter of fact, even if there had been no joint investigation with the participation of your Liaison Officers, the testimonies and evidences in our possession were already sufficient to prove the undeniable provocative act on the part of your side.

“The reason why you dared continue to undertake wantonly such provocative actions is that you have erroneously taken our patience in winning peace as a sign of weakness. You believe that we would, in no case, be willing to see the negotiations broken off on account of such matters, and therefore you did not hesitate to shoot at Pan Mun Jom in the first instance, to murder our mil police, and finally even to attempt to murder our delegation. We must tell you that you are mistaken in believing so. It is true that it has been our consistent attitude to be extremely patient and tolerant for the sake of armistice and peace. But there is a limit to our patience. And further, we are well aware that peace will not be attainable with our side alone demanding peace unilaterally. Since your side has wantonly undertaken such provocative acts outside of the conference room, while within the conference room you have persistently insisted upon your arrogant proposal of pushing the military demarcation line into our positions to stall the negotiations, it is already crystal clear what good faith you could have in the armistice negotiations.

“We hope that our armistice negotiations may proceed smoothly and reach a fair and reasonable agreement acceptable to both sides. But as, following your murder of our military police, your side further carried out purposeful murderous bombing with our delegation as tgt, how could such a hope be realized? Consequently, our delegation could not but declare a suspension of the armistice negotiations on Aug 23, to await your responsible settlement of this serious provocative incident by your side. When the neutral zone is of no significance to you who are prepared at any time to murder our unarmed delegates present in the neutral zone for the purpose of the armistice negotiations, how then can you deem it possible for us to continue the armistice negotiations.

“It should be clear to you that all the dealings between our side and your side so far are based on the principle of equality and reciprocity. If your side does not show with deeds that you respect this principle, but on the contrary brazenly assumes the air of a victor and wantonly violates all the agreements based on this principle, including the Kaesong neutral zone agreement, the responsibility resulting therefrom and all the consequences rest entirely with your side.

“With regard to the provocative incident of bombing the Kaesong neutral zone by your armed forces at 2220 hrs, Aug 22, with the intention of murdering our delegation, we hereby raise a strong protest before all the just people of the world, and await a satisfactory reply from your side. Kim Il Sung, Supreme Commander of the Korean Peoples Army, Peng Teh-Huai, Commander of the Chinese People’s Volunteers.”

Part 2. Analysis.

a. Facts:

1. The “bombing incident” was a complete and premeditated fabrication. (The “fabrication” is attested to by the investigation made by Colonels Kinney and Murray. The “premeditation” is evidenced by the immediate announcement from written notes by the Communist Liaison Officer, Colonel Chang, that there would be no further meetings and the assurance by this same officer under questioning that all meetings “were off from this time”. The decision must obviously have been made in advance at the highest level.)

2. The Communists have announced that negotiations are suspended pending a satisfactory reply to the allegation. (This announcement was made in several languages beginning at 240115K August and continuing through 241200K August.)

b. Possible Motivation:

1. The Communists desire an “excuse” to bring an end to the negotiations, with the object of seeking to fix the blame for the cessation upon the United Nations. It is possible that, with no desire for an ultimate peace in Korea, they have accomplished their original program during the time that the negotiations have now run. This is borne out, to some extent, but [by] tactical operations now in progress and pending. A “suspension” can well be the preliminary to a complete “break-off” at a time of their own choosing.

2. The incident is designed to provide a stalling procedure to meet the timing of the Kaesong talks with global events such as the Japanese Peace Treaty Conference in San Francisco and the Russian peace offensive.

3. The Communists desire a suspension based on manufactured incidents in order to strengthen their propaganda position and regain the initiative in the conduct of negotiations.

Part 3. I propose to broadcast subject to your comments, hereinafter requested, the following message to Kim Il Sung and Peng Teh-Huai:

“Your message of 24 August, pertaining to an alleged United Nations aerial attack on Kaesong on the evening of 22 August, has been received.

“This most recent addition to the alleged incidents by elements of the United Nations Command, so utterly false, so preposterous and so obviously manufactured for your own questionable purposes does not, in its own right, merit a reply. Nor do the other incidents you have cited as intentional violations by the United Nations Command of the neutral zone at Kaesong. When not fabricated by you for your own propaganda needs, these incidents have proven to be the actions of irregular groups which you have been unable to control and your fear of which I fully understand.

“In spite of this, I have consistently required my senior delegate and the commanders of the forces under my command to grant you the courtesy of a full inspection and report of every alleged incident, regardless of its manifest falsity.

“The evidence in this most recent alleged violation was even more palpably compounded for your insidious propaganda purposes than your earlier efforts. In line, however, with our constant endeavor to abide by ethics of decency I have in this case, as in all others, fully investigated your charges. My senior Army, Navy and Air Force commanders have individually certified to me in writing that none of their elements have violated, or could possibly have violated, the Kaesong neutral zone in this or any other instance of alleged violations reported by you.

“I have caused the results of the investigation into this most recent allegation to be widely publicized, so that the entire world will be fully cognizant of your quite evident intent to use a ‘manufactured’ incident in order to evade your responsibility for having suspended the negotiations.

“The allegations made in your several recent communications concerning the alleged firing on Pan Mun Jom; the alleged ambush of 19 August; and the alleged bombing and strafing of Wednesday night, 22 August, are rejected without qualification as malicious falsehoods totally without foundation in fact.

“When you are prepared to terminate the suspension of armistice negotiations, which you declared on 23 August, and cease placing such groundless obstacles in the path of those negotiations, I will be prepared to consider directing my representatives to meet with yours, with a view to seeking a reasonable armistice agreement, which your words would indicate you desire, but which your deeds belie.”

Part 4. Because of the far-reaching potentialities of this situation, I believe you will wish to review this proposed broadcast before release. I believe it to be in accord with your current directives. Request your comments.¹

1. The Joint Chiefs of Staff responded in the following message, telegram JCS 99793, dated August 24:

   “Reur CX–69566.

   “We approve your proposed broadcast subj to:

   “(1) Insertion of ‘by United Nations forces’ after ‘19 August’ in penultimate para, and

   “(2) Revision of final para to read as follows:

   “‘When you are prepared to terminate the suspension of armistice negotiations which you declared on 23 August, I will direct my representatives to meet with yours, with a view to seeking a reasonable armistice agreement.’” (Black Book, Tab 4)

   General Ridgway assented to these changes and informed the Joint Chiefs that the broadcast would be made at 11:30 a. m. (Korean time) on August 25. (Telegram C–69568, August 25; Black Book, Tab 5) See also infra.