The Korean War: The Untold Truth

Chapter 15 The Outbreak of War (2)
At the same time, other parts of the national security apparatus began to scramble.Assistant Secretary of State for the United Nations John Hickson is at his home in Washington's Cleveland Park district. Around 10 o'clock, the phone rang. "Night calls were not unusual in those days. ... I had developed a habit at the time, and it kind of reflected this busy life we ​​lived. If I called after 9 o'clock, I grabbed the phone At the same time, the other hand will subconsciously pick up the car keys, just in case."

This time the call was made by the duty officer of the Far East Department. He said: "There is a situation. I think you should come here immediately. I can't explain the reason on the phone."

Hickson drove through Stony Brook Park to the State Department's office building, "I wondered what happened all the way."Judging by the call from the duty officer, he knew that the problem was in the Far East. "I think the most likely scenario is that the Chinese Communists are trying to invade Taiwan."

News of the invasion came calmly, even listlessly, to the Pentagon.At 11:30 that night, Lieutenant Colonel Chester Clifton, the Duty Officer of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was initially informed of the attack by inquiries from the press.After checking with the Joint Chiefs of Staff's information center, he determined that the rumored incursion had been confirmed and that the Chief of the Joint Staff, Rear Admiral Arthur Davis, had been notified.Clifton then reported to his immediate superior, Colonel Matthews, who at first thought it unnecessary to inform Gen. Omar Bradley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, but he agreed to do so. (When they finally notified General Bradley, he had already heard from the reporters; he had nothing to say to them.)
Thus, in the first few hours, all the Pentagon -- represented by Clifton -- did was prepare a brief press release announcing that the U.S. government was aware of the invasion and that U.S. forces were not involved .

At 12:10 midnight, they made another practical move.Brigadier General Thomas Timberman, the deputy chief of staff for military operations, established what he called a "command post" in the Army Military Service.In fact, the function of the "command post" was to ensure that any sporadic intelligence from the State Department was passed on to General MacArthur's headquarters on the other side of the Pacific.

Secretary of Defense Louis Johnson just went to the Far East a few days ago to conduct some field investigations, mainly to learn about Taiwan's defense issues.The phone rang and woke him from the bed.As soon as he answered the phone, he called Secretary of the Army Frank Pace, effectively entrusting Pace with acting on behalf of the civilian agency of the Department of Defense to make any decisions that had to be made that night.Johnson was exhausted.Beyond that, as he later said, there was almost nothing the Defense Department could do that night because "there was nothing more we could do."For hours, General Bradley was the only member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff who had been informed of the incursion.

The person who had to make the final decision on America's response was President Truman.He had just spent the first hours of a long-planned vacation in Independence on Saturday night.After dinner, the family chat was interrupted by the ringing of the telephone.The call was from Secretary of State Acheson. "Mr. President," he said, "I have just received the very serious news that the North Koreans have invaded South Korea."

Truman's first instinct was to leave immediately for Washington, but Acheson told him to wait.Intelligence was insufficient, and North Koreans frequently attacked South Korea with battalion-sized troops.It is believed that the operation Mucho reported was just a routine border skirmish (although Acheson is skeptical).What's more, rushing to do a long-distance flight in the dark of night is not only dangerous, but also cause panic in the outside world.

Acheson did make a specific proposal that he intended to call a special meeting of the UN Security Council to declare Korea invaded.Truman agreed, and asked Acheson to report in time the next morning, and to call as soon as possible if he got more information.

The joy of the family reunion that night was wiped out by a phone call.According to Margaret Truman: "From the moment I got the news, my father made it clear that he feared it was the beginning of World War III."

After Truman approved the referral of North Korea to the Security Council, John Hickson began trying to make phone calls to members of the American delegation.He knew that Senator Warren Austin, the permanent representative, was in Vermont for the weekend and could not be reached by phone.So Hickson called the home of Deputy Representative Ernest Gross, but again had no luck, only his young daughter was home.Hickson wasn't sure she understood what he meant: The call was urgent, and her father should call him back immediately."I don't know the age of the little girl, but we can't wait," he said.

In the middle of the night, Hickson decided to cut aside all conventional channels and call the home of United Nations Secretary-General Trygoff Lie. "I briefed him about the incident and the first thing he said (in a thick Norwegian accent) was, 'Oh my God, Jack, this is against the UN Charter'."

"I couldn't think of anything else to say at the time, I just said: 'That's what you said to me, Lie, and of course it violates the Charter of the United Nations.'"

Long after midnight, Hickson finally found Ernest Gross, and they discussed briefly the strategy to be employed.Hickson's aides are working on a draft resolution that will be flown to New York by State Department lawyer David Winhouse in a few hours.Now is a favorable time for the United States to display its strategy.A few months earlier, the Soviet representative to the Security Council, Yakov Malik, had withdrawn from the meeting in protest of the continued occupation of the seats by the Chinese Nationalists.The Soviets believed that the "China" seat on the Security Council should go to the new communist government.If Malik returns to the Security Council, he can use his veto to prevent the Council from taking any action.

They were sure that Malik would not be there, that he would have to consult Moscow, which would take a long time.Hickson also believes that Malik knows that if the Security Council does not vote unanimously, it cannot take any military action. "He probably thought he had enough time to play a role."

At this point, it's anyone's guess what the president will ultimately ask the United Nations to do in response to the invasion, in part because no one knows exactly what happened to North Korea.In Rusk's words, despite ongoing efforts to "get a clearer picture of what's happening in North Korea," as of early Sunday morning, beyond the first telegram, neither Mucci nor the embassy in Seoul had sent back any more. information.Acheson and Rusk discussed the public relations issue and concluded that it was "extremely important" that the decision to refer the matter to the Security Council, along with news of the North Korean invasion, hit the papers on Sunday morning.Therefore, Acheson finally decided to use the only telegram sent by Mu Qiao as the basis... to go to the Security Council, and the time was slightly earlier than the news deadline.

At 2:30 a.m., Hickson dictated the proposal to the Security Council to Ambassador Gross by telephone.At the same time, telegrams were sent to the other members of the Security Council (KMT China, Cuba, Ecuador, Egypt, France, India, Norway, and the Soviet Union) informing them that the United States had requested a special session.The cable also urged them to consult their governments for prompt action.The official U.S. request reads as follows:

The United States Embassy in the Republic of Korea has notified the State Department that North Korean forces invaded the territory of the Republic of Korea at several locations in the early hours of June 6 (Seoul time).

Radio Pyongyang, under the control of North Korea, has reportedly broadcast a declaration of war against the Republic of Korea, effective from 9 p.m. ET.

An attack by the army of the North Korean regime under the above circumstances can be regarded as a breach of peace and an act of aggression.

At the request of my Government, I request Your Excellency to convene an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council.

Washington is clearly heading for a crisis, possibly even a war.But at this moment, all the diplomats and generals can do is to wait for further news from the front line.This sense of urgency did not make Harry Truman restless.Before midnight, he said good night to the whole family, and fell asleep the moment his head touched the pillow.

South Korea's troops crumble
Near noon Seoul time on Sunday, the U.S. military mission became aware of the dire situation facing the South Korean Army.Reports from the front showed North Korea's invasion strategy: Multiple infantry columns, under cover of tanks, headed south toward Seoul along two major highways.

The main direction of attack was along the Cheorwon-Uijeongbu-Seoul line, which passed through a wide valley and had been used by invaders for centuries.This force includes 2 divisions and 1 regiment, with a total of 2.8 people.The invasion column was cleared by Soviet-made T-34 tanks, and was covered by Soviet-made artillery, mortar and heavy machine gun fire.Their opponent was only an understaffed South Korean division with less than 1 troops.

Another North Korean column moved southward in the west along a road that cuts through the lowlands of the west coast, the main thoroughfare between Seoul and Pyongyang.The North Koreans had the same strength in this direction - 2 divisions and 1 regiment, under the cover of tanks, attacked a South Korean division that was understrength.These are the two main forces attacking Seoul.Since South Korea's logistics network of roads, railways, and communications is concentrated around Seoul, the fall of the city would endanger the country's existence.

The other three attacks by the North Koreans were of less immediate concern.One was to attack a South Korean regiment that was isolated on the Ongjin Peninsula. The Ongjin Peninsula was completely separated from South Korea by the Yellow Sea; the other was to attack the central city of Chuncheon; support of a small amphibious landing force).

On the first day of the war, the most shocking tragedy was the crushing defeat of the ROK Army - which Brigadier General William Roberts, the head of the US Advisory Group, once declared that it was "second to none in Asia of its size".Responsibility must be shared by Americans and South Koreans.Due to Roberts' refusal to believe that tanks could be used in North Korea, South Korean forces had only a few anti-tank weapons.In the frantic first few hours of the battle, some troops managed to use the American 105mm howitzer, but this weapon was not designed to fight tanks.As one U.S. artilleryman pointed out: "Soldiers hardly know the gunner's special technique of direct aiming and using curved-fire guns to hit tanks. This sounds easier than doing, and only experienced gunners can keep calm and shoot successfully. Even So they had to have a little bit of luck." The South Korean force had only 91 howitzers, most of which were abandoned in the first days of the war.The Americans do not provide South Korea with heavy weapons and equipment because they are worried that they will use them to invade the North. The consequence is that the South Koreans are now hard to protect themselves.

What surprised the American advisers most was that the morale of the South Korean troops was low and the fighting spirit was completely lost.But there have been commendable exceptions, namely the incredible bravery of man versus machine.The frustrated defenders near Wenshan couldn't stop the T-34 tanks. They strapped the explosive packs on their backs and rushed under the tanks to kill themselves.Some people rushed towards the tanks with explosive packs or blasting tubes under the rain of machine gun bullets; others jumped on the top of the moving tanks, desperately trying to open the hatches of the tanks with iron hooks so that they could throw grenades.The warriors managed to knock out some of the tanks, but it is estimated that more than 90 people were killed.It wasn't long before such warriors appeared again.

Sidney Smith of the London Daily Express, one of the first reporters to arrive on the battlefield, gave a more typical description of the retreat of South Korean troops: "I saw some senior commanders in trucks sitting on soldiers In the middle, he is wearing snow-white gloves, holding a saber in one hand, and holding a branch as an umbrella in the other.” Bizarre phenomena can be seen everywhere: South Koreans flee on military horses at the front line, and animals are frightened by the sound of guns. Running here and there, kicking and kicking; South Korean soldiers used guns to force the people to take off their clothes and wear them to cover their military uniforms, so as to mix in the fleeing crowd, while the officers stood by and remained indifferent.

At noon, North Korea showed another advantage.At that time, the dark clouds over Seoul had just dissipated, and two silver-gray Soviet-made Yak-style propeller fighter jets flew over Seoul and Gimpo Airport many times, but did not straf.Four hours later, the Jacques plane came again.Two of them swept Gimpo Airport with extremely accurate firepower, hitting the control tower, an oil storage tank and a US-made C-1 transport plane.The rest attacked a small airfield near Seoul, damaging and destroying 1 of the 54 trainers.The planes then flew north along the highway, shooting at the terrified South Korean troops indiscriminately.South Korean troops couldn't fight back -- the same reason the US refused to supply them with fighter jets for fear they would be used to attack North Korea.

But U.S. military advisers on the front lines occasionally sent encouraging reports by radio: several battalions of South Korean troops near Uijeongbu were organizing counterattacks; The reserves are on their way to the front; the planned destruction of roads and bridges along the invasion route is underway.The big wild card is whether the South Korean Army can hold out enough to regroup or hold out until the United States has time to send combat troops to their rescue -- an option U.S. advisers strongly advocate.

poised macarthur

Disaster loomed, and there was one man who remained calm, and that was General Douglas MacArthur.Twelve hours after the war, he still exuded an air of indifference.At 12 p.m. Tokyo time on Sunday, he met with John Foster Dulles at his office in Tokyo.Dulles is a well-known foreign affairs spokesman of the Republican Party. He was recently hired by Secretary of State Acheson (a bipartisan political show) to assist in the negotiation of the peace treaty with Japan.A few days earlier, Dulles had paid a stop by North Korea, posing for a photo with South Korean soldiers on the 6th parallel (the South Korean soldiers seemed at a loss for the regular top hat Dulles was wearing).Dulles also addressed the South Korean Parliament and hinted at uncertain help in the event of a catastrophe:
In spirit, the United Nations counts you as one of their members. ... The American people welcome you as equal members of the family that made the free world. ...Therefore, I say to you: you are not alone.As long as you continue to function effectively in the great cause of creating human freedom, you will never be alone.

This kind of vague and general term has different meanings for those who want to take advantage of it.But John Allison, a career State Department official who accompanied Dulles on the visit, argued that Dulles had "managed to express what he thought Dean Acheson had missed in January when he spoke to the National Press Club." .

Dulles and Allison now wished to speak with General MacArthur about the North Korea trip, and they found the general seemed indifferent to the war that had broken out hours earlier.Allison described MacArthur as "pacing up and down his spacious office with a remarkable air, his khaki shirt open at the collar and the familiar corncob pipe in his mouth."So far, reports from the front are still sporadic, and MacArthur has not appeared anxious.He said to the guests: "This may only be armed reconnaissance. If Washington does not hinder me, I can tie one hand behind my back and use only one hand to deal with it." Some fighters.MacArthur said he was sure the North Koreans wouldn't fly them, but he was prepared to give some of them a boost. (Later that day, a visiting reporter chatted with MacArthur and found that he was mainly worried about "the idiots over there in Washington." MacArthur told the reporter, William Matthews, "I hope the American people will have the courage to rise up face the situation.”)
Dulles and Allison returned to the hotel and immediately drafted a telegram to Dean Acheson:
The South Koreans have the possibility to use their own power to prevent and repel the attack, and if so, it is the best.But if they are unable to do so, then we believe that American forces should be used. …to allow south Korea to be ravaged by armed attack without provocation will produce a chain of disasters that may well culminate in World War III.

(End of this chapter)