The Korean War

Eyewitness: A North Korean Remembers

by Young S Kim

Young Sik Kim --- Korean War Starts --- Korean War: 1950 ---

US Invasion --- Battle of Hamhung --- Home by Christmas ---

Fall of Hamhung --- Student Volunteers --- MacArthur's Fall

Young Sik Kim

According to his book, Young Sik Kim wrote this account in 1995.   Born in 1935, he was the son of a rich North Korean landowner and businessman.   Although born in North Korea, he was an anti-Communist, and worked for the Americans during and after the Korean War.   In 1956 he went to the US to study Physics at Brigham Young University in Ohio, and became first a nuclear physicist and later (1980) director of a computer software company.  

Looking back on his experiences, he reflects that: 'I have realized that my anti-Communist crusade was based more on my personal experience than an ideology.   Kim Il Sung took away our land ...   The Soviets took the food, factories and other properties left behind by the Japanese which should have belonged to the Korean people.'   Now, he describes himself as a 'humane socialist-capitalist', and says that he resents the corruption of the South Korean officials and the racism of many Americans at the time: '[During the Vietnam War] the American people raised their voice when their military committed atrocities against the Vietnamese civilians. Lt. Kelly was court marshaled for a war crime at My Lai. There were thousands of My Lai's in Korea but not a single soul in America has raised a voice of conscience or remorse'.  

Kim's final comment on the war deserves mention:

Young Sik Kim

The Korean War Starts

June 25 - Pyongyang: Kim Il Sung declares war and N. Korean Peoples Army invades S. Korea in force. At the same time, Radio Seoul says S Korean army units are advancing rapidly towards Pyongyang and will liberate N. Korea very soon. Radio Pyongyang claims major victories and widespread uprisings throughout S Korea. We are confused but want to believe the Seoul's version of what's going on and expect S Korean units to reach our town at any time.

Photo: N Korean tanks cross the 38^th

June 25 - The invasion starts at 0400 hours on the Onjin Peninsula. N Koreans start shelling Kaesong at 0500 hours. The ROK 12th Regiment panics and runs south. By 9:30 a.m., Kaesung is in N Korean hands. Several US military advisers (KMAG) are taken captive. The main thrust is spear-headed by the N Korean Army 3rd and 4th divisions at Cholwon. The ROKA 7th Division collapses at Cholwon and the N Korean tanks race toward Seoul.

June 25 - 9 a.m., John Muccio, the US ambassador to S Korea, cables the State Dept. - "an all-out offensive against the Republic of Korea has begun" It has taken the US and S Korean governments five full hours to realize what's happening.

June 25, 10 a.m. - Washington, DC: Gen. Bradley, Chairman of the US JCS, hears about the invasion from United Press reporter Dayton Moore. Bradley is stunned and speechless. He is caught with his pants down. The general informs his chiefs of staff - "I am of the opinion that South Korea will not fall in the present attack unless the Russians actively participate in the operation. Therefore, if Korea falls, we may want to recommend even stronger action in the case of Formosa in order to offset the effect of the fall of South Korea on the rest of East Asia."

June 25, 5 p.m. - Tokyo: MacArthur states

"This is probably only a reconnaissance in force. If those asses back in Washington only will not hobble me, I can handle it with one arm tied behind my back."

He will send a few fighter planes to the S Korean Air Force although those gooks won't know what to do with them. About at this time two N Korean YAK fighters strafe Rhee's residence. Rhee is set to flee for his life. US CIC people monitoring Rhee's phone notify Muccio. Muccio warns Rhee that the entire ROK Army will quit fighting if Rhee fled Seoul now. Rhee agrees to stay in Seoul with Muccio. Muccio makes arrangements for evacuation of American civilians.

June 26 - 6 a.m., Syngman Rhee phones MacArthur at his house. An aid tells Rhee that the general is not to be disturbed and tells Rhee to call back in late in the morning. This drives Rhee into a rage -

"American citizens will die one by one while you keep the general asleep in peace."

Rhee demands to talk to the general now. Finally, MacArthur takes the phone and hears an enraged Rhee -

"Had your country been a little more concerned about us, we would not have come to this! We've warned you many times. Now you must save Korea."

MacArthur assures Rhee that he will take care of Korea.

June 26 - 9:30 am, Pyongyang: Kim Il Sung speaks to the nation -

"Dear brothers and sisters! Great danger threatens our motherland and its people! What is needed to liquidate this menace? Under the banner of the Korean People's Democratic Republic, we must complete the unification of the motherland and create a single, independent, democratic state! The war which we are forced to wage is a just war for the unification and independence of the motherland and for freedom and democracy."

June 26 - 11 a.m., Radio Seoul (HLKA) says that the "Fierce Tiger" unit (Maengho Dae) of the 17th Regiment has liberated Haeju City on the Onjin Peninsula. It goes on to say that S Korean soldiers have killed 1,580 N Korean soldiers. Maengho Dae is led by Col. Kim Chong Won, formerly a sergeant in the Japanese Imperial Army, who fled N Korea in 1945.

The 17th Regiment and the ROKA 1st Division are made of Japanese collaborators who fled the North. These units are commanded by two brothers (formerly with the Japanese Imperial Army) - Paek In Yop and Paek Sung Yop, respectively.

US Ambassador Muccio orders evacuation of all American civilians. Some 700 Americans are loaded onto a Norwegian fertilizer ship at Inchon.. MacArthur is not worried - he believes that the ROKs will regroup and throw back the invaders. He is angry at Muccio for ordering the American evacuation. At this very moment, Muccio hears North Korean Army artillery closing on Seoul.

Later into the night, Rhee Syngman decides to flee Seoul without asking Muccio's permission. A special train is requisitioned to carry Rhee and his close associates (and their relatives). The train leaves in the dark of the night. Somehow, the American CIC fails to inform Muccio of Rhee's flight This "easy' flight of Rhee gives rise to a conspiracy theory which claims that Rhee and MacArthur have connived to seduce Kim Il Sung into the Korean war.

June 27, 1950 - Muccio flees Seoul. He drives his jeep south looking for the S Korean Government and Rhee. For the first time, MacArthur realizes the gravity of the Korean situation. He tells Foster Dulles "The only thing we can do is get our people safely out of the country." A courier delivers an urgent message from the Joint Chiefs of Staff. MacArthur tells the courier -

"Tell them I'm engaged in seeing Ambassador Dulles off.. If I don't get back in time, have the chief of staff talk to the secretary."

June 27 - A general panic hits the Seoul citizens and tens of thousands of refugees clog all roads leading south. Two days earlier, the ROK army engineers placed explosives on all bridges on the Han River. There are much debates on when to blow up the bridges. Gen. Chae and the US advisers want to wait - there are more than 10,000 ROK troops yet to cross the Han River - in addition to the countless refugees. The Deputy Minister of Defense orders the bridges destroyed promptly but Gen. Chae refuses - Gen. Chae is bodily removed from his command. Radio Seoul HLKA is still saying that S Korean troops are marching on to Pyongyang.

Chae was killed a few days later in a mysterious circumstance and Gen. Jung Il Kwon (a former captain in the Japanese Imperial Army) takes over and obeys the command to blow up the bridge. The chief of the S Korean Corps of Engineers blows up the Han River bridge at 2:15 a.m. and kills several hundreds soldiers and refugees still on the bridge. He cuts off the main escape route for the retreating S Korean troops and refugees. The poor engineer was executed. Kim Paik Il and the Deputy Defense Minister who issued the order were untouched.

June 27, 1950 - Washington, DC: The US JCS finally realizes that S Korea is about to fall without US ground troops. The much vaunted ROK Army is in full rout and there is little hope that it is about to regroup on its own. How could all those experts at the CIA and the military brass have missed their mark so badly? At a war council, Pres. Truman and Dean Acheson propose sending ground troops. Gen. Bradley opposes military intervention - "if we committed our ground forces to Korea, we would have to have a mobilization, at least a call-up of some National Guard divisions.". The meeting adjourns without any decision. The following day, Gen. Eisenhower urges the military and Pres. Truman to intervene in Korea.

US Ambassador Muccio at last finds the missing S Korean government in Taejun. Rhee is holed up in a house virtually isolated from the world around him. Muccio is angry at Rhee for fleeing Seoul without his approval and Rhee is mad at Muccio for not providing US troops.

June 29, 1950 - 8 a.m., Muccio picks up Rhee Syngman to meet MacArthur at Suwon. MacArthur's plane (Bataan) is attacked by a N Korean YAK fighter, but no damage is done. Rhee meets with MacArthur in private for two and half hours. No one knows what they have discussed. Big Mac states - "Give me two American divisions and I can hold Korea." Upon completion of the secret meeting, Rhee and Muccio head back to Taejun. Their plane narrowly escapes from another YAK fighter.

June 29 - N. Korean Army takes Seoul - It is weird. We see pictures of N Korean soldiers marching in Seoul and yet Seoul Radio is still claiming some fantastic victories!! How can this be?

Photo: N Koreans tanks are welcomed by the Seoul citizens.

At last the sad truth emerges. A column of S. Korean POW's passes through our town. Some are wounded and being carried by fellow POWs. The column is lead by a S Korean army officer still proud with his head held high. But the rest seem to be dejected and scared. Two women from the crowd throw rocks at the column. A N Korean army officer runs toward the women shouting something and the women run away. The crowd is quiet and sad. Some people are crying openly. So this is what our 'liberators' look like?

June 29 - Washington: Dulles reports to Truman on the confused status of MacArthur and advises Truman to fire MacArthur now. But Truman is scared of MacArthur, who "is involved politically in this country and he cannot be recalled without causing a tremendous reaction. He has been built up to heroic stature." Dulles agrees with Truman, but promises his full support if Truman decided to fire MacArthur in the future.

June 30 - Seoul: Kim Kyu Sik welcomes the Korea People's Army. Kim was one of the founding fathers of the Korean Provisional Government (KPG) in China. He was named its foreign minister in 1919 and he went to Paris (Treaty of Versailles) to petition for Korean independence - in vain. After liberation, he tried with other patriots to form a coalition government for all of Korea but failed. He managed to escape Rhee's assassins. Gen. Song Ho Song, former commander of the ROK 2nd Division, organizes the People's Volunteer Army manned by South Koreans.

The US CIA reported:

"The ROK government's past failure to win the support of its restless student class could account for more than half of Seoul's students actively aiding the Communist invaders, with many voluntarily enlisting in the Northern army.

Apparently attracted by the glamour of a winning army, the morale of these recruits may suffer rapidly if the going gets rough...The working class generally supports the Northern Koreans, while merchants are neutral and the intelligentsia continue to be pro-Southern...The streets are crowded, especially with youths engaging in Communist demonstrations."

I am bewildered by the easy victory over the S Korean Army. Newspapers are full of combat stories: S Koreans trying to stop tanks with hand grenades; S Koreans surrendering at the sight of a tank; S Korean soldiers turning against their own officers and so on. The US intelligence agents were well aware of the impending invasion. As early as 1949, these agents routinely warned MacArthur of the invasion plan. But these warnings went either ignored or unreported to the US decision makers. Kim Ilsung caught the US intelligence guys with their pants down. The CIA, the State Dept., the Army Dept. and the Far East Command were in " agreement that the possibility for an attack on the Korean Republic existed at this time, but they were all in agreement that its launching in the summer of 1950 did not appear imminent", said Gen. Bradley (chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff).

June 30 - MacArther reports to Washington -

"The only assurance of holding the present line, and the ability to regain later lost ground, is through the introduction of US ground forces into the Korean battle area."

The Army Chief of Staff (Gen. Collins), is taken in by MacArthur (and earlier by Ike) and changes his mind about not sending troops to Korea. Earlier MacArthur was given the authority to send a regimental combat team to Pusan to safeguard it for evacuation of US citizens.

However, MacArthur wants Gen. Collin's approval to send one or two regimentals teams to the front lines. Collins goes over Bradley's head and gets Truman's approval and tells MacArthur -

"Your recommendation to move one regimental combat team to combat area is approved."

Thus the US intervention in the Korean War begins without the knowledge of its top military brass, Gen. Bradley. MacArthur has manipulated a weak president and gotten himself a chance for glory at the expense of the Korean people.

MacArthur's personal ambition finds lofty justifications in a CIA recommendation for military intervention in Korea: -

"Voluntary or forced withdrawal would be a calamity. US commitments abroad no longer would be trusted. Friendly nations might lose political control or feel compelled to seek an accommodation with the USSR. The USSR will proceed with limited aggressions. It would be politically and psychologically more advantageous for the US to mobilize in support of US and UN intervention in Korea rather than to mobilize after a withdrawal."

Pres. Truman pays little attention to the CIA - he thinks the CIA has bungled the Korean affair and wants a more capable man to head the organization.

The Korean War - 1950: War of Unification

July 1,1950 - Muccio sends his deputy Noble to meet with Rhee Syngman. Noble asks Rhee to evacuate Taejun. Rhee is going mad and blames MacArthur (Rhee's "great God"), Truman and Muccio for the disaster in S Korea. Rhee announces that he and his wife are ready to die in Taejon - no more retreat. Rhee's wife finally talks the old man out of his madness. Rhee and his cabinet retreat to Taegu.

July 2 - Japan: Col. Smith receives his marching order from Gen. Dean, commander of the 24th Division -

"When you get to Pusan, head for Taejon. We want you to stop the North Koreans as far from Pusan as possible."

Gen. Dean did not know where the ROK Army or Rhee was - he did not care. Col. Smith and Company are given a Messiah's welcome at Pusan complete with a marching band. MacArthur's pointman in Korea, Gen. Church, assures Col. Smith that

"a few white soldiers will scare the shit out of the gooks and the war would be over in no time at all".

July 3 - US war planes bomb ROK Army headquarters at Suwon, ROK tanks, ROK ammunition trains, and civilian targets still in S Korean hands. Rhee wants to know just whose side are the Yanks? MacArthur orders US planes to stay north of the Han River. S Korean police commits one of the worst mass massacres at Suwon under Donald Nichols (US CIC) supervision at Suwon.

About 1,800 political prisoners are shot to death by the retreating police. Two American bull-dozers are kept busy digging ditches and burying the victims. The prisoners are brought in from nearby prisons in army trucks. They are lined up along the edge of a ditch and shot in the head while Donald Nichols dutifully photographed the scene.

July 5, 1950 - Jukmi Pass (Osan): The N Korean tanks roll over the first American unit sent to Korea - The 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division, USA Army, code named Task Force Smith (after its commander, Col. Charles Smith). The task force had 540 men, 120 rounds per M1 rifle, two 75mm recoilless rifles, with 12 rounds, four 4.2" mortars, 2 days of C-rations and no working radio. Col. Smith escapes south with 86 survivors - the wounded, dead and heavy equipment are left behind.

July 6 - Taejong: One of the worst atrocities of the war occurs. The S Korean police under the guidance of US advisers murder some 7,000 imprisoned guerrillas from Cheju, Taebaik, Yosu and other areas in the village of Yangwol near Taejung. The local farmers are forced to dig mass graves for the dead while the Americans video the massacres from their jeeps.

July 7, 1950 - Beijing: Mao sees a disaster looming for Kim Il Sung and orders his military to prepare for military actions in Korea. Gen. Nie Rongzhen, acting Chief of Staff of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, convenes a series of meetings of the Military Affairs Committee.

July 8 - The US military is worried about the Soviets stirring up trouble while US is tied down in Korea. A CIA internal report states -

"It is not yet clear whether the USSR will force the Chinese Communists to give open support to the Korean operations or to start a new operation elsewhere in the area. The Peiping regime is unlikely to commit military forces to operations outside China on its own initiative, but almost certainly would comply with a Soviet request for military action. Chinese Communist troop strength and dispositions would permit intervention in Korea with little or no warning."

Another CIA report asserts -

"the Soviet leaders would be justified in assuming a substantial risk of general war during the remainder of 1950, arising either out of the prosecution of the Korean incident or out of the initiation of new local operations. Soviets are capable of employing against the continental US the twenty-five A-bombs estimated to be currently available. The Soviets may use TU-4 bombers possibly disguised with US markings on one-way missions, and clandestine introduction of nuclear weapons into key harbors by merchant ships."

These reports never reached the top policy makers.

July 9, 1950 - Tokyo: MacArthur sees his glorious career going down the drain. His army, which now outnumbers the communists, is losing badly in S Korea. MacArthur wants to use A-bombs in Korea. And Rhee urges him to drop the A-bombs right away. Rhee does not mind Korea turned into a no-man's land as long as he retains his power. A man who had embezzled Korean patriots in 1925 - wants his country destroyed to stay in power and satisfy an American megalomaniac's ego.

MacArthur asks for ten to twenty A-bombs. Mac says -

"I would cut them (Chinese and Russians) off in N Korea. In Korea I visualize a cul-de-sac. The only passages leading from Manchuria and Vladovostok have many tunnels and bridges. I see here a unique use for the atomic bomb - to strike a blocking blow - which would require a six-months repair job."

Fortunately for Korea, the cool heads in Washington deny Mac's request. If no nukes, then MacArthur says he needs four infantry divisions in addition to the four he has requested two days earlier.

Photo: N Koreans occuprying Taejun

July 10, 1950 - The American and S Korean troops are bottled up in the Pusan perimeter. The North Koreans are trying to hit Pusan from due west. The N Korean 2nd Army led by Gen. Mu Jong pushes south along the west coast. The Pang Ho San Unit (the 6th Division of the Mu's 2nd Army) takes Chinju. The People's Committees are resurrected in liberated areas in S Korea. Guerrillas come out from their hideouts and join the N Korean Army.

More than 60 members of the Republic of Korea National Assembly join the N Korean cause. It is back to the early days of 1945 - we are getting liberated from the American colonials and their Japanese collaborators. Kim Il Sung is our national hero after all!

July 19, 1950 - Chiang Kai Sek offers to send three of his best divisions to help Rhee. The Joint Chiefs of Staff think Chiang is trying to get a free meal out of Rhee's problems. Truman tells Chiang to mind his business -

"The present military neutralization of Formosa is without prejudice to political questions affecting that island. Our desire is that Formosa not become embroiled in hostilities disturbing to the peace of the Pacific and that all questions affecting Formosa are to be settled by peaceful means as envisaged in the Charter of the United Nations."

July 20, 1950 - N Korean newspapers are full of pictures of inhuman atrocities committed by the American soldiers: whole villages burned down, women and children machine gunned, captured soldiers beheaded and so on. The Americans routinely burn villages suspected of harboring guerrillas. Many are burnt just to deny sanctuary to the communists. Children and women are choice targets for the Americans.

The Americans show no respect for Koreans, especially the ROK Army. The majority of combats are done by S Koreans and yet they are hardly mentioned in any war news or briefings. American units routinely diverted war supplies intended for ROKA to their own units.

The American racism is not limited to the lower-level roughneck grunts. Gen. Hobart Gay, commander of the 1st Cavalry Division, states in public that he does not consider ROK troops ready for any serious combats. Gen. Gay evicts all Korean civilians, women and children, from his area of operation. His eviction includes S Korean police as well. The ROK government officials, including Rhee, are kept in the dark by the US military. Rhee gets war news from newspapers.

July 20 - Taegu: The front lines have stabilized. The UN forces now outnumber the North Koreans - close to 100,000 men. The ROKA is back to 45,000, roughly 50% of its pre-war muster. The US commanders know that the Korean units are filled with farmers and youths pressed into battles with virtually no training. These conscripts are led by equally green "seven-day wonders" - second lieutenants mass produced by the S Korean 7-day "officer" school.

The UN forces now have heavy tanks, modern artillery and mastery of the sky and the seas. A lucky strike by an American bomber wipes out the supreme command of the North Korean Army (South) - the turning point of the war. A solemn Kim Il Sung attends the state funeral of the dead war heroes in Pyongyang.

July 23 - Tokyo: MacArthur cables the JCS:

"Operation planned mid-September is amphibious landing of a two division corps in rear of enemy lines for purpose of enveloping and destroying enemy forces in conjunction with attack from south by Eighth Army. I am firmly convinced that early and strong effort behind his front will sever his main line of communication and enable us to deliver a decisive and crushing blow. The alternative is a frontal attack which can only result in a protracted and expensive campaign."

None of the communist intelligence services pick up this cable.

July 30 - Formosa: MacArthur is given a hero's welcome in Taipei. In an earlier secret cable to Truman, Chiang Kai Sek offered to resign and make MacArthur the new Generalissimo of Formosa (NB: Mac was offered the job of Field Marshall of the Philippines in 1940's). Here is a strange case: an American general is being interviewed for a job with a foreign government. MacArthur talks with Chiang with Chiang's American-educated wife interpreting - no outsiders are present: no one. including the CIA, knows what these old men have discussed. MacArthur wants to expand the war while Chiang wants the Yankee purse opened for him again.

Aug. 1, 1950 - Beijing: Mao Zedong and the Soviet foreign minister Molotov discuss the Korean War. The CIA report on this meeting reads:

"Thus the stage has been set for some form of Chinese Communist intervention or participation in the Korean war. Overt participation by regular forces would preclude admission of Communist China to the UN, while covert participation of Manchurian volunteers might ensure continued localization of the conflict. Intervention could be launched to restore peace by preventing further US aggression and could be linked with the USSR sponsored peace campaign. It is impossible to determine at this time whether a decision has been made. In any case, some form of armed assistance to the North Koreans appears imminent."

Aug. 3, 1950 - The best known surgeon in N Korea, Dr. Lee, is killed in S Korea. Dr. Lee was the only Korean surgeon in Hamhung before the liberation. He was much respected even by the Japanese. After the liberation, he taught at Hamhung Medical College. When the War broke out, he volunteered to serve the People's Army fighting in S Korea. American bombs wiped out his medical unit near Taejun.

Aug. 4, 1950 - A #500-bomb explodes on the roof of an abandoned factory mere 20 miles from Pusan - the N Korean People's Army Front Command Headquarters. The bomb breaks Gen. Kang Kon's arm, chief of staff (Kang Kon died on Sept. 8, 1950 by a land mine) and nearly misses Gen. Kim Chaik, the Front Commander. It does destroy the radio room and leaves only a single radio still operating. Kim Chaik realizes that he has missed a golden opportunity to take Pusan - he has wasted too many resources and time in his ill-conceived mop up operations in Chulla Namdo region.

Photo: N Korean Front Army HQ

Aug. 5, 1950 - Beijing: The Military Affairs Committee orders Gao Gang, commander of the Northeast Military District, to complete combat preparations by the middle of August. Gao Gang has 4 armies, 3 artillery divisions and air units under his command.

Aug. 6, 1950 - Beijing: Mao Zedung gathers his top generals - Chu The, Peng Tehuai, Su Yu, Nie Rongzhen, Deng Xiaoping, Ho Lung and others - to discuss the Korean War and the Taiwan invasion plan. Peng and Su advise Mao that the People's Liberation Army is not ready to invade Taiwan. The Army will need modern weapons and transports. Besides, the US Navy is the way because of the Korean War and the invasion must be postponed until the Korean War is concluded and the US Navy withdrawn from the Strait of Formosa..

Gen. Nie, acting chief of staff, PLA, reports that the N Korean Army is bogged down and the tide is about to turn against it. Gen. Nie is also concerned about the excessive loss rate (more than 40%) of the N Korean Army. Gen. Su Yu, in charge of the Taiwan invasion army, asks - "What is China supposed to do about it?' The PLA Supreme Commander, Zhu Te, replies -

"The Revolutionary Committee has spent a great deal of time discussing the possibility - and I emphasize the tentative nature of our talks. The Committee feels, after giving the matter lengthy consideration, that we should urgently prepare contingency plans to back up the Korean People's Army if the situation on the Korean battlefront deteriorates. There seems little likelihood of this happening, but I need not remind you of the need for planning for any and every contingency."

Gen. Ho Lung asks - "Is there any chance of the Americans using the atomic bomb?". Gen. Nie states that it is not likely because Stalin has the bomb, too. But, will Stalin help? Another general asks if the PLA is not up to invade Taiwan now, how can it fight the Americans in Korea? After much debates, the generals agree that China must be prepared to help Kim Il Sung.

Peng states - "There is every indication that this bridgehead will be eliminated within the next two weeks. If it is not, then the possibility of protracted war in Korea cannot be ruled out. Look carefully at the geography. The Korean peninsula . Long and narrow. Remember the enemy. MacArthur the - what's the word?--the 'island-hopper.' The Korean peninsula lends itself to amphibious operations, though this will require a lot of daring. Our Korean comrades discount the possibility, but remember, whoever makes the first move, wins."

"Remember also that a long and narrow landmass imposes its peculiar limitations on our field armies. In past campaigns we have habitually traded space for time when confronting a better-equipped opponent. Korea has no such space. It could turn out to be a straitjacket. A peninsula presents unusual supply difficulties. This occurred to me when I reviewed the American situation in Pusan. The Americans problems are considerably eased because distances within the Pusan perimeter are short. Although it is true that the enemy is forced to transport men and materiel great distances by sea. those supply lines are inviolate. They cannot be cut."

"Our Korean comrades, on the other hand, are operating a long way from their supply bases. This is becoming a dreadful disadvantage. American air attacks on those supply lines are causing serious losses. The basic problem of Korea, for either side, is that the farther you advance the slimmer your supplies are likely to become."

"China will become involved in hostilities in Korea only if the integrity of their Democratic People's Republic is directly threatened. There is no likelihood of any such disaster at present. Still, it is our business to cover every contingency, so let us assume that some incredible turn of fortune enables the American imperialists to launch a full-scale invasion north of the 38th parallel. The Chinese response, in my opinion, should be on a limited scale, sufficient to warn the aggressors. If that fails, we should attack with the full weight of the People's Liberation Army."

Aug. 6, 1950 - Truman wants to know exactly what MacArthur has promised Chiang, but the old fox hedges. Truman sends Averell Harriman to Tokyo to grill the general and determine if he is mentally and physically fit for his job. MacArthur tells Harriman that: 1) Chiang offered him a full-time job commanding Chiang's troops, but Mac declined (Mac offered Chiang consulting services), 2) Discussed purely military matters. MacArthur then proposes to Harriman to "let Chiang land on Chinese mainland and get rid of him that way." Harriman believes the old general is going insane or senile

Aug. 8, 1950 - American bombers appear daily and bomb railroad and bridges in Hamhung. Some 47,000 Americans are fighting in S Korea and they outnumber the communists. The N Korean Army has lost its momentum and the front lines stabilize on the Pusan perimeter - from Pohang on the east coast, Chinju on the southwest and Taegu on the north. The NKA 6th Division is stopped at Pohang and fails its mission to drive south along the coast to Pusan - the first (and the fatal) defeat of the N Korean Army.

Aug. 10, 1950 - We have a sudden increase in wounded soldiers arriving in our town. The Hamhung Medical School is turned into an army hospital. My brother is only a sophomore at the School but my father thinks he will be drafted as an army doctor at any time. The army hospital is located at the foot of Mt. Unhung, only a few blocks from my house. The wounded soldiers are allowed out to roam the neighborhood and mingle freely with civilians. The soldiers pick flowers in the meadow across from my house (the hospital backs into the meadow). I spend hours fascinated listening to the war stories of these veterans fresh from the battle fields of S Korea.

I get to know Comrade Choe very well. He is 35 years old - his family was killed by Koreans working for the Japanese in Manchuria. He joined the Chinese 8th Route Army at the age of 14. I met him a few days earlier in the meadow across from my house (back of the Hamhung Medical School - an army hospital now). As usual I was chatting with a group of wounded soldiers sun bathing in the meadow. I asked about the famous Chinese 8th Route Army - using the derogatory "Ddong ddae nom" (dirty chinaman).

One of the comrades gave me a tongue lashing for using this term. This comrade was Choe. He told me his story - how he was taken care of by Chinese peasants when his family was wiped out in Manchuria. He went on to relate his war experience in China and S Korea. Choe says that the American soldiers rely on tanks and air planes. They are no match for us - man to man, but they do have more tanks and planes (which we don't have). He points to a wounded tank commander sitting next to him. His tank shot down an American B29 plane, but not before he was wounded.

Comrade Choe says that the American soldiers are afraid to die. At the first sign of a trouble, they panic and abandon their weapons. The Americans like to play opossum. Choe recommends shooting "dead" Americans at least twice in the head. The Americans are afraid of night fighting because their air planes cannot help them during the night. They depend on trucks and jeeps for mobility - they don't like to walk any long distance. You destroy their vehicles and they surrender without fight.

Choe's winning secret is to slip a few men behind the enemy positions and fire a few shots. This spooks the Americans into daze and frantic calls for help. Choe was leading an attack when friendly covering fires by a green-horn gunner hit him on the left foot. Choe has no bad feelings towards the gunner: he is eager to rejoin his unit.

Aug. 20, 1950 - Stalin realizes that Kim Il Sung is about to go under and sends a military commission headed by Gen. M. V. Zakharov, deputy chief of staff of the Red Army, to Pyongyang. Zakharov plots out various military options - guerrilla warfare, Soviet volunteers, Chinese volunteers, and so on.

Photo: Mao Zedung, Bulganin, and Stalin

Aug. 24, 1950 - Beijing: Gen. Deng Hua, Commander of the Northeast Defense Force, reports to Mao that Kim Il Sung's rapid advance has resulted in excessive extension of supply lines, that the great gap between forward and rear areas are likely to invite MacArthur to launch amphibious operations in the vicinity of Seoul or Pyongyang. Mao agrees with Deng Hua's assessment and warns Kim Il Sung and Stalin to slow down and beef up coastal defenses.

Mao is worried that Kim will get China sucked into his war. China had been fighting for over 20 years. and it had only just been unified. The internal devastation had to be: repaired and land reform in newly liberated areas is in an unfinished state. In border districts there are bandits, spies. and Kuomintang remnant forces. Mao would prefer to prepare for liberation of Taiwan and Tibet. But the US imperialists are about to wipe out Kim Il Sung and he must be helped.

Aug. 25, 1950 - An American general Dean, commander of the 25th Division, is captured hiding in a rice field near Taejung. His picture is a front-page news. Dean was in charge of the Taejung defense on July 19. His troops were wiped out by the guerrillas and N Korean troops, but Dean escaped and has been in hiding since. Finally, he is spotted and captured on this day. He is the ranking American POW of the Korean war. (NB. Col. Lee Hak Ku was the ranking NK POW. Gen. Walker, commander of the 8th Army, was the ranking KIA and Gen. Kang Kon, commander of the N Korean Army (South) was the ranking KIA on the communist side.).

Aug. 25 - 1950 - The first major OPC operation, code named Trudy Jackson, is conducted by a US team led by 39-year old Lt. Eugene Clark of the US Navy. Clark was a Japanese linguist attached to MacArthur's G2. He is volunteered to lead an OPC team made of Lt. Youn Joung (ROK Navy), Col. Ke In Ju (ROKA), a US Army captain, and 10 Korean agents trained by Tofte. Col. Ke was formally an intelligence officer who was fired by Rhee for his failure to predict the invasion.

August 28, 1950 - Hans Tofte flies Clark and the two Korean officers to an OPC camp at Sasebo. There they receive a quick lesson on covert operations and get teamed up a CIA radio team. Tofte gives Clark enough weapons, rice, dried fish, sugar, whiskey and gold bars to form a guerrilla army.

Photo: Lt. Clark and his CIA partisan unit near Inchon

 Aug. 28, 1950 - Kim Il Sung orders his final campaign to wipe out the Pusan perimeter. Pohang and Chinju and Nakdong front lines crumble, but the US 8th Army regroups and stops the campaign. This is the turning point of the war. The North Korean Army has run out of steam and goes down hill from this time on. The bulk of the Chinese war vets are dead or wounded.

On Augst 31, 1950, the team boarded the British warship HMS Charity and left for Inchon. They were transferred to the S Korean warship PC-703 at the entrance of Flying Fish Channel. On Sept. 1, 1950, Lt. Clark and his team landed at Yonghong-do in preparation for the Inchon (14 miles from Yonghong) landing. Clark pressed some 50 islanders into scouting missions in Inchon. Informants called in the N Korean troops; the commandos escape to a nearby island of Palmi-do leaving behind the islanders. Those who helped the Americans were shot by the communists.

Sept. 1, 1950 - Shenyang (Manchuria): Gen. Peng Dehuai establishes his secret army (Chinese Volunteers Army) headquarters at an old Japanese armory. Peng moves in with two battered suitcases an one book on butterflies - his only hobby.

Sept. 5, 1950 - Nakdong: Kim Il Sung's final offensive, involving 133,000 ill-trained troops, to crush the Pusan perimeter comes to a halt. For the first time, the UN forces match the N Korean Army in numbers and fire power. By now the entire infantry fighting manpower of America is in Korea.

Sept. 8, 1950 - Kang Kon, commander-in-chief of the N Korean Front Army and many of his staff are killed by a land mine. Kang was born on June 23, 1918 in S Korea and joined Kim Il Sung's army in 1933 and stayed with Kim until his death on the banks of Nakdong, S Korea. Two days later, Kim Il Sung holds a solemn funeral for Kang in Pyongyang.

Photo: Kim Il Sung's top generals - Kang is first from right

 Kim Ilsung failed because he did not heed Sun Tzu's dictum - " ground over which it flows; the soldier works out his victory in relation to the foe whom he is facing. Therefore, just as water retains no constant shape

Do not repeat the tactics which have gained you one victory, but let your methods be regulated by the infinite variety of circumstances. Military tactics are like unto water; for water in its natural course runs away from high places and hastens downwards.

So in war, the way is to avoid what is strong and to strike at what is weak. Water shapes its course according to the nature of the, so in warfare there are no constant conditions. He who can modify his tactics in relation to his enemy and thereby succeed in winning, may be called a heaven-born captain. The five elements (water, fire, wood, metal, earth) are not always equally predominant; the four seasons make way for each other in turn. There are short days and long; the moon has its periods of waning and waxing."

Kim Il Sung has failed to shape his tactics to fit the changing war circumstances. The Americans could and did read Kim's movements like a clock. Kim was beating his head against the wall.

Sept. 10, 1950 - Shenyang: Peng Tehuai speeds up his preparation for Korean intervention. Peng sees that Kim Il Sung is fast fading away. Peng is faced with the enormous problem of assembling a an army of a quarter of a million: most field officers have no experience of fighting a conventional war against a well-organized army; transportation and communication are virtually non-existent. Mao Zedung thinks 3 weeks will be enough to place armies in N Korea, but Peng knows that it will take him at least 2 months.

Peng plans his counter attack using a giant relief model of Korea. He tells his staff for the time on the record that the Korean situation is indeed very bad for Kim Il Sung. Peng has three field armies - the 38th, the 40th and the 42nd, the finest - of the 4th Army at his disposal. Two additional field armies - the 27th and the 39th - are being brought in from South China. Peng observes -

"In war, numbers alone confer no advantage. Do not advance relying on sheer military power. Manpower alone will not win a war in Korea. Korea will be a battle of supplies."

Peng continues:

"Our planning must be flexible. In war, there are no constant conditions. We must match our methods to the prevailing circumstances: the terrain, the weather, the state of the enemy. Given the theoretical situation we have here, knowing our weaknesses as well as our strengths, I would oppose an all-out initial assault. But I would not advocate a purely guerrilla-style campaign.

Our first response to an American invasion of North Korea should be limited. The PLA has not the equipment, the supplies, or the time to launch large-scale operations deep into Korea. If by some mischance the Americans and their allies ever invade the DPRK, we should halt them north of Pyongyang at the narrow neck of the Korean peninsula."

Peng doubts if MacArthur would be so stupid as to move into the mountainous north and overreach himself - especially if he detected a large Chinese force in place. Peng orders more supply and engineering units; three more field armies arrive. Peng orders mobilization of local civilians for war.

Sept. 12 - Truman fires Secretary of Defense, Louis Johnson, for insubordination and for leaking confidential information to Truman's political opponents. Johnson has been a staunch supporter of Chiang Kai Sek and MacArthur. Gen. George Marshall is recalled from retirement to take over the Defense Dept. Truman axes his head spook, Adm. Hillenkoetter. Gen. Walter Smith takes over the CIA.

Sept. 15, 1950 - Shenyang: Gao Gang, the boss of Manchuria, calls for an emergency meeting. He informs the latest intelligence on a large American naval task force near the S Korean coast. Half way through the meeting, a signals officers brings in the news of Inchon landing. Peng Dehuai calmly proclaims to his staff -

"The American counterattack has begun. This morning the imperialists landed on the Korean coast close to Seoul. The place is called Inchon."

 US Invasion of North Korea

The command center is an utter chaos. Some N Koreans officer run around and scream at each other without knowing what to do; while others are furiously burning documents. The commanding general faults his intelligence for bad information - he has been informed that "it is impossible to launch a full-scale amphibious operation at Inchon."

On paper, the general has one division guarding Inchon, 3 divisions guarding Seoul and 4 divisions guarding Pyongyang. But, he knows that all these are "divisions' in name only and that he has at best 6,000 men to fight the invasion force of the X Corps - nearly 40,000 men. More than 4,000 N Koreans die. Civilians are indiscriminately napalmed and several captured N Korean nurses are shot by the Americans.

Sept. 22 - Kim Il Sung at last faces up to the music and orders a general retreat. The US CIA estimates NK losses: out of the original force of 165,000, less than 40,000 manage to return home. All equipment in S Korea are lost. The N Korean Army has 30,000 to 50,000 new recruits in N Korea. The actual figures are: 30,000 out of the invading force of 90,000 return to N Korea. Virtually all senior commanders are back in N Korea. In addition, N Korea has a reserve of over 125,000 men intact in N Korea and Manchuria.

Photo: Black Gi's prodly show off a POW.

Until the Inchon landing, the US JCS's primary concern was bracing for a Dunkirk at Pusan. With the abrupt and unexpected collapse of the North Korean Army, the JCS faces a new problem - to invade or not to invade N Korea. The overall US position is "one of steadfast patience and determination in opposing communist aggression without provoking unnecessarily a total war." In short, US is militarily NOT ready to fight USSR and China at this time. The primary interest of US is Europe - not Asia.

Sept. 25, 1950 - The Chinese Army Chief of Staff, Gen. Nie Ronzhen, tells the Indian Ambassador that China will intervene in Korea even at the risk of a wider war with US. Indeed, Mao will welcome a chance to settle old grievances with the Yankee imperialists. A few days later, Chou En Lai tells the Indian Ambassador the same line. The Chinese recite the old debts owed to the Korean people: over 100,000 Koreans in the Chinese wars of liberation, of land reform, and against Chiang Kai Sek. The Ambassador passes on the information but Dean Rusk ignores "this Indian with a spade beard".

Gen. Bradley (The JCS chairman) was opposed to MacArthur's war in Korea but Truman overrode his objection and approved stripping of US, Puerto Rico, Panama, Hawaii and Okinawa to feed MacArthur's army. Bradley tells Truman that a war with China is "the wrong war, at the wrong place, at the wrong time, and with the wrong enemy."

The State Dept. experts on the USSR, George Kennan and Charles Bohlen, urge not to cross the 38th parallel. They believe that the USSR and China will join the war - if US invaded N Korea. But the hawks, Dean Acheson, Dean Rusk (the guy who drew the 38th parallel and who got US involved in the Vietnam War) and John Allison win the day and talks Truman into siding with MacArthur over the objection of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Sept. 27, 1950 - MacArthur gets the official order to invade N Korea:

"Your military objective is the destruction of the North Korean armed forces. In attaining this objective you are authorized to conduct military operations, including amphibious and airborne landings or ground operations north of the 38th Parallel in Korea, provided that at the time of such operations there has been no entry into North Korea by major Soviet or Chinese Communist Forces, no announcement of intended entry, nor a threat to counter our operations militarily in North Korea. Under no circumstances, however, will your forces cross the Manchurian or USSR borders of Korea" - Gen. Bradley, Chairman, US Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Why invade N Korea and risk a wider war with China or Russia? Once again the US intelligence fails to serve the US national interest. About 90% of the CIA intelligence comes from MacArthur's headquarters. Much of Mac's intelligence come from Chiang Kai Sek who has vested interests in widening the war. This is the last chance for Chiang to regain the mainland China. Chiang and MacArthur have been in cahoots to promote a war with China. The CIA estimates: 565,000 communist troops in Manchuria (including about 70,000 Koreans) with more troops arriving from China. Chou En Lai's repeated warnings go unheeded. MacArthur does not think too much of the Chinese 'peasants' army.

Sept. 27, 1950 - The British intelligence learns of a Chinese military council decision to intervene in Korea. US ignores this information. Simultaneously Chou announces publicly that "China will send troops across the frontier to participate in defense of North Korea." The hawks at the State Dept. led by Acheson and Rusk label Chou's statement a "bravado - part of a joint Soviet-Chinese diplomatic effort to save the North Korean regime." This arrogance (or ignorance) is shared by the CIA.

The CIA analysis of Chou's statements reads:

"Despite statements by Chou En Lai and troop movements in Manchuria...there are no convincing indications of an actual Chinese Communist intention to resort to full-scale intervention in Korea....From a military standpoint the most favorable time for intervention in Korea has passed....

While full-scale Chinese Communist intervention in Korea must be regarded as continuing possibility, a consideration of all known factors leads to the conclusion that barring a Soviet decision for global war, such action is not probable in 1950. During this period, intervention will probably be confined to continued covert assistance to the North Koreans." The consensus of the US top military is that the Russians are not ready for global war while China is not militarily capable of unilateral intervention - namely, "there will be no Soviet or Chinese communist intervention in Korea."

Sept. 28 , 1950 - Seoul: MacArthur and Rhee make a triumphant entry to Seoul from Kimpo and hold a ceremony at the capitol. MacArthur says -

"By the grace of merciful Providence, our forces fighting under the standard of that greatest hope and inspiration of mankind, the United Nations, have liberated this ancient capital city of Korea. It has been freed from the despotism of Communist rule and its citizens once more have the opportunity for that immutable concept of life which holds invincibly to the primacy of individual liberty and personal dignity....Mr. President, my officers and I will now resume our military duties and leave you and your government to the discharge of the civil responsibility."

Rhee says - "We admire you. We love you as the savior of our race." MacArthur tells the press that the war is almost over and that the North Korean Army is basically wiped out. What remains is mop-up actions that even the S Korean Army can handle.

Sept. 30, 1950 - The N Korean invasion of S Korea officially ends. The invasion has cost S Korea 111,000 killed, 106,000 wounded, 57,000 missing. 314,000 homes destroyed and 244,000 homes damaged. US losses so far: 5,145 killed in action; 16,461 wounded; 402 captured; 2,164 missing.

The Inchon miracle elevates MacArthur to the status of an infallible god both in Korea and America. Once again the old general has performed a miracle and saved the American honor. No one, including the Joint Chiefs of Staff, dares to question MacArthur's military decisions. MacArthur is ready for another show and readies his X Corps (those troops involved in the Inchon landing) for the "second" Inchon at Wonsan. The X Corps would trap the N Korean Army for the final kill.

Oct. 1, 1950 - Syngman Rhee orders Gen. Kim Paik Il to invade N Korea with or without US backing. Thus, Rhee realizes at last his dream of 'buk-jin' (march North). The second phase of the Korean War - invasion of North Korea - starts. US entered the war on the pretext of saving S Korea, but now that S Korea has been saved, the US objective changes to reunification of Korea by force after destroying the communist north. US changes from the defender to the aggressor.

A sad Kim Il Sung addresses his people. N Korean Army reverts to guerrilla warfare. They withdraw into mountains in South and North Korea and prepare for a prolonged people's war. MacArthur thinks that his military genius has destroyed the communist forces and all that remains is a mop-up operation. Kim Il Sung. Kim asks Mao for help -

"We request your special aid. Currently, with enemy forces attacking the area north of the 38th Parallel, our situation is extremely disadvantageous. In order to aid our forces. it is requested that the Chinese Peoples Liberation Army be directly mobilized for us immediately."

Oct. 2, 1950 - Beijing: Mao notifies Stalin that China will fight US in Korea -

"We are going to dispatch Chinese troops to Korea under the name of a Volunteer Force to fight the US Imperialists and Syngman Rhee's armed forces, side by side with our comrades, the North Korean forces. The reasons we are sending Chinese troops to Korea are that, if the US occupies the Korean peninsula, the Korean revolutionary forces would be completely removed, the US Imperialists would become more belligerent and arrogant, and it would result in a situation unfavorable to China."

Mao requests that Stalin provide air and logistical supports. Stalin agrees to equip 100 Chinese divisions and send two Soviet air force divisions to Manchuria. Mao and Stalin agree that October 15 is the day to start the operation across the Yalu.

Photo: Gen. Peng in a field camp

Oct. 8, 1950 - Peng Tehuai is given the command of the Volunteer Army (some 80,000 men) and prepares to enter N Korea. Kim Il Sung is a bad shape - he has only three divisions, one labor regiment, and one tank regiment intact and the rest of his army is in South Korea trying desperately to reach the reassemble area at Manpo. These units retreating from South are demoralized and without heavy equipment. Gen. Peng estimates at least two months to regroup and re-equip these units.

Oct. 10, 1950 - Wonsan falls to S Korea's I Corps (the 3rd and Capital divisions) - however, ominously, North Korea's 5th Division controls the mountains and villages around Wonsan. My father runs a state farm near Wonsan. He escapes to our home in Hamhung. He moves us to our country home in Oro-ri, a small farming community a few miles north of Hamhung. Radio Pyongyang broadcasts Kim Il Sung's speech:

"The Korean people are not standing alone in our struggle and are receiving the absolute support of the Soviet Union, the Chinese people,,".

Photo: Wonsan completely ruined

At the same time, Radio Peking broadcasts

"The American War of intervention in Korea has been a serious menace to the security of China from the very start...The Chinese people cannot stand idly by with regard to such a serious situation - created by the invasion of Korea by the United States and its accomplice countries and to the dangerous trend toward extending the war. The Chinese people firmly advocate a peaceful resolution to the Korean problem and are firmly opposed to the extension of the Korean War by America."

The Capital Div. (Sudo Sadang) moves 50 miles north to take my town Hamhung. The 3rd Div. stays put in Wonsan to safeguard the port for the US X corps including the 1st Marine Div. Wonsan is heavily mined by the Russian Navy. MacArthur brings in Japanese Navy mine sweepers lead by Adm. Takeo Okubo to clear the mines. This is the first official entry of the Japanese forces into the Korean War.

MacArthur's generals are competing to be the first to reach the Yalu. MacArthur has not read Sun Tzu's The Art of War -

"Thus, if you order your men to roll up their buff-coats, and make forced marches without halting day or night, covering double the usual distance at a stretch, doing a hundred miles in order to wrest an advantage, the commanders of all your three divisions will fall into the hands of the enemy. The stronger men will be in front, the jaded ones will fall behind, and on this plan only one-tenth of your army will reach its destination.

"If you march fifty miles in order to outmaneuver the enemy, you will lose the commander of your first division, and only half your force will reach the goal. If you march thirty miles with the same object, two-thirds of your army will arrive. We may take it then that an army without its baggage-train is lost; without provisions it is lost; without bases of supply it is lost. We cannot enter into alliances until we are acquainted with the designs of our neighbors. We are not fit to lead an army on the march unless we are familiar with the face of the country--its mountains and forests, its pitfalls and precipices, its marshes and swamps." MacArthur is to lose more than five divisions for his folly.

Oct. 11, 1950 - Stalin informs Chou Enlai that

"The Soviet Union and China forces concluded a treaty of friendly alliance and mutual aid. In this treaty, if any one country is invaded by another country. the other must aid it as much as possible. This is clearly specified. Therefore, as far as we are concerned, we must strive, as much as possible, to limit military confrontation in Korea. As our Chinese comrades say, the Korean war must be made into a local war. If the US makes to bomb the mainland of China, we in the Soviet Union, will deploy our air forces to aid her.

If things work out that way, the war will become unlimited and the possibility of it expanding to Europe or various places in the world increases. Because this is the case, as far as the air force question is concerned, it is necessary to be cautious. Instead. improving the equipment of the Chinese forces seems a good idea. We agree to your requests for urgent aid to equip your 40 divisions. However. this must be done in phases. Right now, we will move to first equip 20 divisions."

Stalin got scared and has changed his mind about sending his air force to fight US. Stalin has realized that China and USSR have a mutual defense treaty which obligates him to fight on the side of Mao, if US goes to war with China. Stalin states that "Comrade Kim Il Sung must form a government in exile in northeast China" and that the best he can do for Mao is to send back the Chinese pilots in training in Russia. Stalin is playing a game with Mao and Kim. He wants to bleed US to death in Korea at the expense of Kim and Mao.

Photo: Peng's advance units cross the Yalu

 Oct. 11. 1950 - Beijing: Mao is furious at Stalin's duplicity-

"Was everything not determined by agreement? How, in a situation where deployment orders had already been issued, could the Soviet Union unilaterally change their decision? If it comes to fighting, one must certainly fight to win,, absolutely. However, in the current situation, even without us having air superiority cannot do anything but fight. If we do not fight, as far as Korea is concerned, it will immediately go into the hands of the enemy.

Also. after an announcement of unification by the Republic of Korea, it is not clear if we would fight or not. Stalin! All Socialist countries are looking to you. We are waiting for your support. But, you are saying that you are temporarily withholding deployment of the Air Force. For Truman's part, with Syngman Rhee fighting Kim I1 Sung, there was no delay in aid at all. If he had delayed even a little, Syngman Rhee would have collapsed and been destroyed.

"Stalin! Why are you saying that you will postpone aid to China and Kim I1 Sung? As far as I am concerned, even if the Soviet Union commits air divisions to North Korea, I don't see that Truman will immediately and absolutely declare war on the Soviet Union. In the current situation, when the atomic bomb is already not a monopoly of Truman's country alone, what makes you believe that he would immediately declare war?

What could he rely on that fight? Without the Soviet Union's help, if operations are only conducted with the Chinese volunteer forces, various types of difficulties will be forced. As far as these are concerned, in terms of numbers. they mean increasing the number of combat casualties.

To what degree? 100,000 -- 200,000 -- if not. then 500.000? Hey, as far as the Chinese People are concerned. even though they do not want war, this will be relentlessly forced upon them."

Oct. 12, 1950 - Mao tells Peng to stop his operations and wait for further instructions. Peng has already placed a sizable force in N Korea. Peng flies to Beijing.

The Battle of Hamhung

A geography lesson - Hungnam is an industrial port city. It has a large ammonia manufacturing factory. Eight miles northwest of Hungnam is Hamhung, the capital city of the Ham-kyong-nam-do Province. Both cities are located on the Hamhung valley. Oro-ri is at the northern tip of the valley and the Sungchung River starts at Oro-ri, flows through Hamhung, and into the East Sea at Hungnam.

A two-lane highway runs northwest from Oro-ri all the way to the Chosin Reservoir. The highway passes through Majong-dong, Sudong, Kotori, and Hagaru. Yudampo sits high in the rugged mountain terrain, some 60 miles from the East Sea. The so-called "highway" is nothing but a dirt track cut on the side of vertical cliffs. Many Soviet vehicles have fallen off the road in 1945.

Photo: Hamhung area map

Oct. 12, 1950 - I wake up in the morning to find the city completely deserted. The communists have left the town during the night. The air raid sirens are left wailing continuously - a prearranged signal for all party cadres to leave town immediately.

One week earlier, all cadres were issued one Russian army survival kit and ordered to head toward Manchuria upon hearing the signal. Each man is allowed to carry only one knapsack and to hide or destroy important documents or equipment. I wonder how they managed to move all those wounded soldiers from the army hospitals in one night and where to?

Our old family friend Comrade Chu (the former boss of the Hamhung Communist Party and my history teacher - the man from China) stops by our country home in Oro-ri (about 40 min. walk from our main house in Hamhung) to chat with my father. He is carrying one knapsack on his back and nothing else - probably, all of his earthly possessions are in his bag. Chu tells my father that the Chinese troops are already in N Korea.

They have reached as far south as Kotori only a few miles north of Hamhung. It is only a matter of time when Gen. Peng's gigantic trap is closed shut and the UN forces annihilated. My father believes him - but I and Gen. MacArthur (whose agents have reported the same info) don't believe it; or rather we don't want to believe it. My father gives Chu a list of contacts in Kapsan and an envelop containing some money. The old comrade Chu walks northward as he had done years ago when the Japanese were about to arrest him.

My father counsels those non-communists who held minor positions in the village government to go into hiding for a month or so. He figures that the UN forces will be gone by then. My father himself fled Wonsan where he ran a small state dairy farm and is lying low in Oro-ri. We have an apple orchard here. His wife #1 and wife #2, with their kids, are staying together for the duration of the war. His wife #3 is staying out in Hamhung - she is caring for her sick mother who cannot be moved.

Oct. 13 - The Battle of Hamhung begins with an artillery duel. A lone N Korean howitzer fires on the column of S Korean troops approaching our city from Wonsan. S Korean artillery returns fire and kills the N Korean officer directing the shelling. All this activity is happening on the other side of Mt. Un Hung close to my house.

A bunch of us watch the 'show' from the top of the mountain. Three men in civilian cloth race toward our city in an American jeep. It is a S Korean scout car looking for enemy units. No resistance - not a single N Korean soldier is to be seen. The jeep bypasses our city and heads north toward Oro-ri and disappears from our view.

Nothing happens for an hour or so. We can see clearly the dead N Korean artillery officer still lying next to his howitzer. Then all of a sudden, the scout car reappears racing south. The men are frantically waving and shouting - tanks ! tanks !. We wait and wait - but no tanks appear. The sun sets and we all go home. I more or less run by the howitzer (and the dead body) and reach my house in Oro-ri in less than 25 min.

On the way, I pass the S Korean guerrilla unit of Commander "X" (more on later) resting behind a farm building. The commander is exhorting his troops - mostly wearing high school student uniforms. It seems that everyone has a Russian Maxim machine gun, a heavy piece of machinery. I wonder how they manage run with the gismo.

My father is mad at me for running around while there is a battle blazing outdoors. He orders everyone into our bomb shelter - actually our kim-chee storage cave. Every Korean house has a kim-chee cave, a large underground cavity used to keep kim-chee during winter. It is a large cavity dug deep in the ground with a thick earthen roof over it. Kim-chee caves double as bomb shelters - dating back to WW2.

It is dark and damp inside the cave - besides all kinds of worms - ants, spiders, cockroaches, etc. -crawl all over us. The air is foul and hard to breathe - but my father is adamant that we all stay put. My sister blabbers - "Dad, Young Sik has a pistol in his school bag !". First, my father thinks she means a toy gun but soon he realizes that it's real thing. He takes my gun away and buries it.

He says we will be all shot if either N Korean or S Korean soldiers find the gun. I don't want to tell him that I belong to an anti-Communist group - lest he may have a heart attack. Lucky for me, my mother is staying at our house in Hamhung and I have to put up with only one parent. My mother does not like hanging around my father's 2nd wife and spends as little time as possible in Oro-ri.

During the night, S Korean troops in N Korean uniforms move in Oro-ri - unopposed. We can tell that they are S Koreans from their southern accent, US army issues and their hair (N Korean soldiers shave their head). They are going from house to house looking communists. Two soldiers burst into our house and ask us to line up. They are looking for military age men for questioning. One soldier stares at my teenage half system who is half naked. The soldiers move on and we go back to bed.

Oct. 13, 1950 - Mao Zedong tells Peng and Chou Enlai (still in Moscow) -

"As the result of an emergency agreement of all the various members of the Politburo, we have reached the unanimous opinion that it is advantageous for us to send troops to Korea. In the initial period, they will attack the ROK forces. In this regard, we have considerable confidence.

First of all, we will put bases in the mountainous areas north of the line joining Pyongyang and Wonsan and rouse the Korean People even more. In Period 1, if only possible to annihilate several South Korean divisions, the situation in Korea will turn in an advantageous direction for us."

Mao Zedong continues -

"With regard to the adoption of the positive policies described above, for China and Korea and Asia and even going out to world as a whole, this is very advantageous. If we do not send troops, the enemy will control all the way up to the environs of the Yalu River, and, as far as the boasts of the reactionary forces within China are concerned. they would gradually grow higher and it would be disadvantageous for us in various respects.

The whole of the Northeast Defense forces would be pinned down on the front line and the military forces in southern Manchuria would be completely dominated. For this reason. we came to the following conclusion. We should participate in the war. We must participate in the war. The profits from participating in the war would be very great. The damage from not participating in war would be very great."

Oct. 13, 1950 - N Korean government moves to Kanggye, a remote mountain village near the Yalu.

Oct. 14,1950: Andong (Korea-China border): Peng Dehuai sends the first train load of Chinese soldiers - the 334th Regiment, the 112th Division, the 38th Field Army - across the Yalu. Marching bands and school children give the soldiers a fine farewell. Soon after, the 42nd Field Army cross the Yalu at Manpojin. Peng's advance army is designated as the 13th Army Group under Li Tianyu.

The 13th is ordered to stop MacArthur at a line just north of Chungchon River. Another field army, the 42nd, would move into regions east of the 13th to protect its flank and the temporary capital of N Korea, Kangye. Two additional field armies, the 50th and the 66th would move into Korea to reinforce the advance units. The latter armies would be designated as the 9th Army Group under Song Shilun. Peng has a total of 380,000 men under his control. The advance units cross the Yalu undetected by MacArthur. The Chinese intelligence has been monitoring American radio traffic and no mention is made of the crossing.

Oct. 14, 1950 - During the night, S Koreans mine the road and wait for the enemy tanks heading in our direction. Early in the morning, three light tanks approach Oro-ri. The lead tank hits a mine and bursts into flames. One of the crew members manages to get out but shot right away. The remaining two tanks turn around and flee northward. We are happy to see S Korean troops. There is no formal welcoming party.

We hang around the soldiers, trying to find out what is going on. I spot the ruined tank and decides to take a closer look - a bad mistake. A S Korean soldier grabs me from behind and threatens to shoot me. Lucky for me, the officer in charge stops the madman. It turns out the road is full of land mines and I was about to step on one - I guess the guy has saved my life and those of the soldiers nearby. I see that the mines are clearly marked and I am so stupid.

Oct. 14, 1950 - Wake Island: MacArthur assures Pres. Truman that no Chinese would dare to face his army; that the Korean War is practically over now. MacArthur tells Truman that:

"formal resistance will end throughout North and South Korea by Thanksgiving...We are no longer fearful of Chinese intervention. ..The Chinese have 300,000 men in Manchuria. Of these probably not more than 100,000 to 125,000 are distributed along the Yalu River. Only 50,000 to 60,000 could be gotten across the Yalu River. They have no air force. Now that we have bases for our air force in Korea, if the Chinese tried to get down to Pyongyang, there would be the greatest slaughter.".

MacArthur continues his fairly tale to his rapt audience:

"With the Russians, it is a little different. They have an air for