North Korean threats to launch a ballistic missile have led the U.S. to suspend the search for the remains of American troops missing since the Korean War, government officials said today.
“When there are suggestions that [North Korea] might launch ballistic missiles, when they make bellicose statements about South Korea and engage in actions that could be construed as provocative, we think it’s not the right time to undertake this effort,” Pentagon Press Secretary George Little told reporters today.
U.S. searchers were scheduled to enter North Korea next month to continue looking for the remains, which have been missing since the early 1950s.
“We are suspending the current arrangement to resume remains recovery operations with [North Korea] until their actions indicate a willingness to move forward in good faith on its commitments,” said Pentagon spokeswoman Tara Rigler, according to the Armed Forces Press Service.
U.S. searchers were scheduled to enter North Korea next month to continue looking for the remains. “We have suspended that effort because we believe that North Korea has not acted appropriately in recent days and weeks and that it’s important for them to return to the standards of behavior that the international community has called for,” Little said.
“The Defense Department remains committed to the fullest possible accounting of the more than 7,950 U.S. service members missing from the Korean War, officials said,” AFPS explains. “In many cases, the United States knows exactly where the service members were buried, as U.S. forces attacked up into North Korea in late 1950 . . . Other areas are more of a problem, officials said, especially graves associated with prisoner of war camps. The North Koreans and Chinese tortured, beat and starved POWs, and many hundreds died from the abuse, officials said.”
