Foreign Relations of the United States, 1952–1954, Korea, Volume XV, Part 1

FE files, lot 55 D 128: Telegram

The Commander in Chief, United Nations Command (Clark) to the Joint Chiefs of Staff

secret
operational immediate

Tokyo, July 2, 1952—9:40 p.m.

CX 51216. Re CX 51050.¹

1. Re para 3, ref msg, I intend to authorize the UNC delegation to make the fol statement if approval is given for the submission of the new figure:

“The interviewing of all prisoners of war to determine the nbr to be repatriated to your control has, within the past few days, finally been completed. You will recall that in Apr you agreed to a recess the purpose of which was to give us time to conduct a poll of all POWs in order to determine a round nbr of prisoners of war who would be returned to your control. In order to assist us you furnished an amnesty declaration, which we used. During that recess we interviewed all of the prisoners of war except those in certain compounds where the mutinous and violent attitudes of some of the prisoners of war made impossible a fair and just interview. In these few compounds we made an estimate of the nbr who could be repatriated to your control. We did this in order to determine a round nbr as quickly as possible in accordance with your rqst. This estimated nbr we added to the results obtained in those compounds where the POWs were actually interviewed. The sum was a round nbr of 70,000 individuals who could be returned to your control. However, it must be remembered that this 70,000 was an approximation; we were always prepared to repatriate any larger nbr resulting from more complete info.

We have now completed the interviews of all the prisoners of war, including those whose attitudes we previously had estimated. The interviews were conducted in such a manner as to give each man an opportunity to make his own decision; the questions employed, as you are aware, actually encouraged each individual to return to your control. Representatives of the press observed the operation. The amnesty proclamation you furnished us in Apr was also made known to the prisoners prior to conducting interviews.

We now have a total of blank individuals whom we are prepared to repatriate to your side after the signing of an armistice. This nbr consists of blank NK; blank CCF; blank SK; and blank CIs.² It is the final total of those we will return to your control and is subject only to negligible alterations resulting from the few who might die, or escape, or from last-minute changes of mind of the prisoners themselves. It is our intention to return to you every NK and CCF POW who will not violently resist such return. It will take a short while yet to prepare the complete rosters of these individuals. In exchange for these rosters we should like to obtain from your side an up-to-date and complete roster of the UNC prisoners of war whom you propose to return to our side. I therefore suggest that we set a date convenient to both sides on which our respective lists can be exchanged.

Since this is the final nbr of individuals who can be returned to your control, and since the achievement of an armistice is prevented solely by a failure to agree on the nbr to be repatriated, we strongly urge that you agree to an exchange of rosters of POWs for verification and a subsequent exchange of POWs based on those rosters”.

2. For your info, ICRC was invited to witness the recent screening operation but declined the invitation.

3. ArEight is now preparing a new figure which will be as accurate as possible, subject only to negligible alterations resulting from the few who might die or escape, or from last-minute changes of mind of the prisoners themselves.

1. Dated June 28, p. 364.
2. The most up-to-date figures as reported in telegram CX 51283, Clark to JCS, July 3, 1952, were as follows: to return to Communist side, 62,169 NK, 6,388 CCF, 4,560 SK, and 9,954 CI, for a total of 83,071; to remain with the UNC, 34,373 NK, 14,412 CCF, 11,744 SK, and 26,338 CI, for a total of 86,867 (FE files, lot 55 D 128).