In its 2000 Annual Report, DPMO states that the U.S. and South Korea (ROK) signed a Memorandum of
Agreement last June whereby the ROK will provide information it develops about possible American remains.
DPMO expects that some sites will be located, but not a large number because South Korea repatriated many
remains after the war. DPMO plans to work with the ROK toward recoveries in the DMZ, ‘as the situation
allows’, given the agreement between North and South Korea to re-build a railway between their two
countries.
CILHI has thirteen recovery teams. 10 are dedicated to Southeast Asia; 2 are dedicated to North Korea;
and 1 is called the global team. It is dedicated to finding losses from WWII.
Five operations, two teams each, will go into North Korea this year. The recovery dates have been
scheduled for April 28 - May 29; June 9 - July 10; July 21 - August 21; September 1 - October 2; and
October 13 - November 10. Remains will be repatriated immediately after each operation, flown in U.S.
military aircraft from Pyongyang, in the presence of uniformed U.S. Military honor guard.
In March, the U.S. and North Korea held ‘expert meetings’ to exchange information in advance of this
year’s recovery operations. According to Al Liotta, who is now the acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of
Defense for POW/MIA Affairs, the team of U.S. officials was pleased with the meetings. They described
them as focused and said the North Koreans seemed to want to move forward. Information provided by the
North Koreans about possible losses was not as broad or as deep as had been hoped for, but they did bring
some. They also seemed more willing than in the past to consider information the United States has
collected as to possible sites for excavation.
The areas for this year’s operations have been decided upon (Unsan/Kujang; Kaechon..‘the Gauntlet’;
and the Chosin Reservoir). Some specific sites within those areas have been agreed to. A further
narrowing should take place in June or July. Any advance decisions can change once the team deploys
and arrives in North Korea to work.
When a team deploys in North Korea, it brings a packet of information to assist in site location and
excavation. The packets contain field search case files for battles known to have been fought in the area.
DPMO’s recent publication, The Effort to Account for U.S. Servicemen Missing from the Korean War, reports
that field search data was co-developed by the U.S. Army Graves Registration Services and the Office of the
Historian. It included known losses and unit locations on the battlefield. Known air crash sites are
included in the packet’s information, as well as archival research and information learned from veterans.