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North Korea renders the remains of American soldiers killed during the Korean War, following a promise made by Kim to Trump When the leaders met in June in Singapore, the first tangible result of the high-profile summit.
Trump, addressing reporters on the South Lawn, said that a plane was carrying the remains of "some great fallen American heroes back from the Korean War." He said that Vice President Mike Pence would salute the families and the remains of the soldiers, and the President thanked Kim "for keeping his word."
"We receive many others but I want to thank the media to fulfill a promise that he has made and I am sure that he will continue to fulfill that promise as they seek and seek and seek, "Trump said. He said that "these incredible American heroes will soon be resting on the sacred American soil."
The United Nations Command stated that 55 cases of remains were recovered in North Korea. The White House has confirmed that a US C-17 Air Force aircraft containing fallen military remains had left Wonsan, a northern coastal town, to travel to Osan Air Force Base at Pyeongtaek, near Seoul, the South Korean capital. An official repatriation ceremony will be held on Wednesday
At the air base, US soldiers and a military guard lined up on the tarmac to receive the remains, which were transported in boxes covered with blue flags. of the UN. 7,700 American soldiers went missing from the Korean War between 1950 and 1953 and 5,300 of them would still be in North Korea. The war killed millions, including 36,000 American soldiers
. In a statement from the US command, General Vincent K. Brooks, commander of the Korean forces, described the recovery mission as a success. "Now we will prepare to honor our fallen soldiers before they continue their journey home."
After the honors ceremony on Wednesday, the remains will be flown to Hawaii for scientific tests. A series of forensic examinations will be conducted to determine whether the remains are human and whether the dead were American or Allied troops killed in the conflict.
Trump tweeted late the repatriation and said, "After so many years, this will be a great time for so many families.Thank you to Kim Jong Un."
North Korean authorities n & # They did not comment on Friday the 65th anniversary of the end of the Korean War, which the country celebrated as "the victory in the war of liberation of the motherland".
Despite the rhetoric of denuclearization before Kim and Trump's meeting in Singapore, their summit ended with a vague goal for a denuclearized Korean peninsula, without describing when and how that would happen.
could be followed by stronger North Korean demands for accelerated talks to formally end the war, which was halted by an armistice and not by a peace treaty. The South Korean Defense Ministry also said the North has agreed to general military talks next week in a border village to discuss reducing tensions between the two countries. built in Seoul were sent to the Korean Border Security Zone as part of the preparations to receive and transport the remains with dignity. Colonel Chad Carroll, spokesman for US forces in Korea, also said at the time that 158 metal transfer crates had been sent to a US air base and that they would be used to return the remains. at home.
200 that North Korea has been storing for some time, and have probably been recovered from the land during agriculture or construction. However, the vast majority of war victims still have to be located and recovered in cemeteries and battlefields across the countryside.
Efforts to recover the American dead have been stalled for more than a decade. The program and a previous US assertion that security measures for staff working in the North were inadequate.
From 1996 to 2005, US-North Korean military research teams conducted 33 recovery operations. North Korea's last visit was in 2007 when Bill Richardson, former US ambassador and governor of New Mexico, returned six sets.
The North celebrated the anniversary of this Friday. the capital Pyongyang and other cities were decorated with national flags and bright red banners. For the first time since 2015, Kim Jong Un announced a general amnesty for prisoners who have committed crimes against the state.
North Korea has maintained the return of the remains as a symbol of its goodwill and intention to improve ties with Washington. The authorities have, however, inherited criticisms from the United States that they are seeking to take advantage of repatriations by demanding excessive charges for handling and transporting the remains.
Pyongyang nevertheless expressed its willingness to allow the resumption of joint research missions in the country. to recover more leftovers. Such missions took place from 1996 until their cancellation by President George W. Bush as tensions over the northern nuclear program were exacerbated in 2005.
Kim Trump's talks with the secretary of US state Mike Pompeo The beginning of the month was hectic as the North accused Americans of making "unilateral and gangster" demands for denuclearization. The North also said that US officials have proposed various "conditions and excuses" to revisit the issue of the official end of the war.
"The adoption of the declaration on the end of the war is the first and most important ending of the extreme hostility and establishing new relations between the DPRK and the United States", said Tuesday the Korean central news agency, in a statement, referring to North Korea under its official name. "Peace can come only after the declaration of the end of the war".
Pompeo said Wednesday that much work remained to be done before a denuclearization agreement in North Korea, but he dodged a specific denuclearization deadline. According to experts, a declaration of official cessation of the war, which could also involve Seoul and Beijing, would allow Pyongyang to steer talks with Washington towards a peace treaty, diplomatic recognition, assurance of the security and economic benefits. Some analysts believe that North Korea will demand that the United States withdraw or radically reduce the 28,500 soldiers they keep in South Korea.
Washington maintained that Pyongyang would not get any significant economic and security sanctions and rewards committed firmly to totally and verifiably eliminate its nuclear weapons. There are lingering doubts as to whether Kim would agree to give up his nuclear weapons completely, that he might consider it a stronger guarantee of survival than any security guarantee that the United States United could offer.
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Ahn reported from Pyeongtaek, South Korea. Kim reported from Seoul and Baldor from Washington. AP reporters Eric Talmadge in Pyongyang, North Korea, Kim Yong-ho in Pyeongtaek, Foster Klug in Seoul and Ken Thomas in Washington contributed to this report.
Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This document may not be published, distributed, rewritten or redistributed.
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