Foreign Relations: Soothing Seoul

FOREIGN RELATIONS Soothing Seoul American forces in South Korea have been strengthened massively in the month since North Korea seized the U.S. intelligence ship Pueblo. More than 200 jets have been flown into South Korean bases to back up the 50,000 U.S.

troops stationed in the country. An ar mada of 20 warships, including the aircraft carriers Yorktown and Ranger, has been positioned in the Sea of Japan off North Korea. And last week, after a hurried trip to Seoul by Special Presidential Envoy Cyrus Vance, it became clear that South Korea is about to be shored up further with some of America’s most advanced conventional weapons.

The U.S. soon will send at least one squadron of its latest operational fighter-bombers, F-4 Phantoms, to South Korea. Likely to follow are heavy tanks and naval combat craft. The armaments are part of a $100 million increase in the $170 million U.S. military aid program previously scheduled for South Korea this year.

Such additional assistance was clearly justified in the face of mounting aggressiveness by the Communist North. No less important, it was also intended to soothe the fears and injured pride of Chung Hee Park’s government. The

South Koreans are disturbed because they have been left out of secret U.S.-North Korean talks at Panmunjom on the fate of the Pueblo’s 82 surviving crewmen. Moreover, they are worried that the Viet Nam war, in which they have nearly 50,000 troops, has so taxed U.S. capabilities that Washington would be unwilling to come to Seoul’s aid in case of a Communist attack.

Bellicose as Usual. To assuage Seoul’s sensibilities, Troubleshooter Vance joined up with U.S. Ambassador William Porter for five days in South Korea, came away with a renewed declaration of amity between the two countries. Park’s government was promised modern weapons. In return, South Korea consented to forget its concern for face and not oppose the bilateral Panmunjom talks, which the U.S. feels must remain secret to be effective.

Though Seoul unsuccessfully sought a commitment that the U.S. would retaliate automatically against an attack from the North, Vance partly pacified the South by renewing promises to hold prompt talks to meet such a threat.

On the day of Vance’s return to Washington, the sixth secret parley was held with North Korea, but there still was no indication that Pyongyang was prepared to give the seamen their freedom at any time soon. In fact, the North was as bellicose as usual. It spent much of the week publicizing purported “confessions” by the entire crew admitting that Pueblo had “intruded deep” into North Korea’s waters—a ploy apparently aimed at inducing the U.S. to issue an apology in exchange for the crewmen’s return. And at week’s end Pyongyang loudly claimed that U.S. “armed boats” had invaded North Korea’s western coastal waters for “provocative acts,” but were driven away.