U.S. Marine Operations in Korea, 1950-1953, Volume 5 (of 5): Operations in West KoreaUnited States. Marine Corps
History
U.S. Marine Operations in Korea, 1950-1953, Volume 5 (of 5): Operations in West Korea
United States. Marine Corps
Korean War, 1950-1953 -- Campaigns; United States. Marine Corps -- History -- Korean War, 1950-1953
As the new week began on Monday, 6 April, and the world looked to
Panmunjom for the next set of signals in the war, a new stage developed
in the truce negotiations. Within five days after the talks had begun,
both sides agreed to return the disabled prisoners in their custody.
Final papers for the preliminary exchange were signed at noon on 11
April by Rear Admiral John C. Daniel, USN, for the United Nations
Command, and Major General Lee Sang Cho, of the Communist delegation.
The week-long transfer of sick and wounded POWs was scheduled to begin
20 April, at Panmunjom.
The Communists announced they intended to release 600 sick and wounded
UNC prisoners (450 Korean, 150 non-Korean), a figure which Admiral
Daniel called “incredibly small.”[395] For its part, the UNC indicated
that it planned to free nearly ten times that number of North Korean
and Chinese POWs. Communist and Allied representatives also agreed that
truce talks would be resumed at Panmunjom, once the prisoner exchange
was completed.
[395] Hermes, _Truce Tent_, p. 415.
Security precautions went into effect at both Panmunjom[396] and the
entire Munsan-ni area, 10 miles southeast, on the first day of the
prisoner talks. All facilities at both Panmunjom and Munsan-ni were
placed off limits to Eighth Army personnel not directly involved in
the operations. Regulations were strictly enforced. Even before the
negotiations opened at Panmunjom, actual construction work for LITTLE
SWITCH was well under way by Marine engineers. “Operation RAINBOW,” as
the building of the facilities for the POW exchange was called, began 5
April.
[396] With resumption of truce negotiations, the 1st Marines,
whose left battalion sector was immediately adjacent to
the Panmunjom neutral zone between the two battle lines,
took certain precautionary measures. The regiment set
up radio communication with the UN base camp at Munsan
and reactivated its rescue task force. This unit was on
alert to evacuate the UN truce team from Panmunjom in
the event of Communist hostile action or any threat to
security. While the talks were in session, a forward
covering group, composed of a reinforced rifle company
and 1st Tank Battalion platoon, occupied the high ground
east of Panmunjom at COP 2. Here the Marine rescue
force maintained close surveillance of the enemy in the
Panmunjom peace corridor as well as the safe arrival and
departure of the UN truce team shuttled in by helicopter
or motor convoy. 1stMar ComdD, Apr 53, pp. 5, 14 and App.
II, pp. 1–4.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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