A recent press release from the Department of Defense indicates that a total of 21 sets of remains have been recovered from the mission recently completed in April/May of 2004. The recovery operations involved two teams in North Korea located in both the Chosin Reservoir and Unsan County, and mainly by U.S. JPAC team members. For the first time since 1999, the remains were transferred overland across the Demilitarized Zone and repatriated to U.S. control at Yongsan Military Compound in Seoul, Korea.

The area of the Chosin Reservoir in North Korea yielded 12 sets of remains believed to be those of U.S. Army soldiers from the 7th Infantry Division. They were engaged against Chinese forces during the time period of November-December 1950.

In the area of Unsan County, a second team successfully recovered seven sets of remains. This particular area is the site of battles between the U.S. Army's 1st Cavalry and the 25th Infantry Divisions and the communist forces around the time period of November of 1950.

China Personnel Accounting Progress

In February of 2004, technical support experts and JPAC personnel met with Chinese representatives in Beijing to discuss the recovery operations for 2004. The goals established by DPMO encompass archival research by Chinese researchers regarding the operational records to include the Korean War, Cold War, and Vietnam War. New cases will be reviewed through regular meetings at the provincial level. Chinese Korean War veteran's oral history program will be resumed. Specifically, the Korean War F-86 crash site near Dandong, China will be investigated. The identification of WWII and Korean War aircraft crash sites will occur through analyst exchanges. A Korean War vets-to-vets exchange will be conducted in Washington D.C. Again, theses are the wide range of goals that DPMO has set. We will all be interested and hopeful of positive outcomes of these goals.

It is interesting to note that the Chinese are willing to discuss recovery operations regarding WWII and the Chinese Civil War. It seems that where the cooperation from the Chinese gets touchy is their viewpoint that anything to do with the Korean War, Cold War, and Vietnam Wars contact must be through the services of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) instead of the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA). This is due to the fact that the Chinese look at our efforts for answers regarding the Korean, Cold and Vietnam Wars to be a bilateral humanitarian effort. As reported at the Second Annual Plenary Conference held May 18-20th, 2004, in Washington, the MFA has been cooperative in the bilateral relationship. The United States Government assess the cooperation of the MFA as progress and wishes to continue this positive relationship seeking further answers through the PLA. The answers to many of the questions are held in archives that the PLA controls, therefore the work of the MFA on the United States behalf is critically needed.

DPMO must continue to press forward at utilizing the efforts of the MFA to gain access to the many archival resources and the ability to interview veterans in order to get the answers for our families. The Coalition of Families will continue to attempt to work with DPMO to enhance their efforts.