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DPAA Families/VSO/MSO Quarterly Call and Update

Wednesday, October 31 2018, 2:00 PM

‘Fulfilling Our Nation’s Promise’

Summary: Keeping the families of our missing as well as veterans informed is a primary objective

of the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency's (DPAA) mission. This update is intended to

provide an overview of efforts during the previous quarter to account for our missing.

The agenda includes:

 Update on the Personnel Accounting Mission (Director Kelly McKeague) 

 Outreach and Communications (OC) Overview (OC Director, Todd Livick)

 Partnerships and Innovations (PI) Update (PI Director, Dr. Tom Holland)

 Operational Update (Deputy Director Operations RDML Kreitz, Dir Indo-Pac Colonel Brian 

Peterson/Dir Euro-Med Colonel Brian Pearl) 

 IDs/Disinterments (DPAA Lab Director, Dr. John Byrd)

 AFMES-AFDIL Update: (Director DoD DNA Operations, Dr. Tim McMahon)

 Question &Answer

Update on the Personnel Accounting Mission (Director Kelly McKeague)

Budget

As with the rest of DoD, we’re very pleased to begin the new FY with a full appropriation, a first in 

10 years. The Congress augmented our FY19 budget request of $131M with two adds: $10M for 

Vietnam War operations and $20M for Korean War operations. We are fortunate in the interest and 

support Members of Congress and their staffs have respectively shown and provided. These 

additional resources are key to enabling us to expand capacity and capability. 

Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK)

The August 1st honorable carry ceremony of remains from the DPRK was a landmark event hosted 

by Vice President Pence. The 55 cases containing purported remains of U.S. service members have 

been undergoing forensic testing and analyses at both DPAA and the Armed Forces Medical 

Examiner System-Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory (AFMES-AFDIL). Last month, 

DPAA identified two service members, U.S. Army PFC William Jones and U.S. Army MSG Charles 

McDaniel. These IDs were made relatively quickly because their dental remains and clavicles were 

among the remains. In regard to the recovery aspect of the commitment reached in Singapore, we 

have been designated by the State Department to lead the negotiations with the Korean People’s 

Army (KPA) and our issue is delinked from denuclearization. DPAA will continue communicating

with KPA officials over the next few months to try to secure an agreement for operations in the 

DPRK in the spring of 2019. Recoveries in the DPRK were last conducted in 2005. . 
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Korean-Cold War Annual Briefings

In August, DPAA hosted the annual Korea/Cold War Government Briefings in Arlington,

VA, which was attended by a record 720 family members. Speaker highlights included

updates from the DoD, State Department, and National Security Council officials who 

participated in the Singapore Summit; a briefing from Governor Richardson; an update from 

the South Korean Ministry of National Defense Agency for KIA (Killed in Action) Recovery 

and Identification (MAKRI); a wreath laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown; and a 

dinner hosted by the Republic of Korea Ministry of Veterans Affairs. At the meeting, we also 

explained the Korean War Disinterment Project that was approved by DoD and will enable 

the systematic, conditions-based disinterment of all 652 Unknowns at the National Memorial 

Cemetery of the Pacific over the next five to seven years. Eight disinterments occurred this 

past week, the first of the project.

National POW/MIA Recognition Day, September 21, 2018 

This year’s National POW/MIA Recognition Day was observed by our Southeast Asia detachments 

at the respective U.S. Embassy. Here at the Pentagon, Secretary Mattis hosted the ceremony, and his 

poignant speech emphasized the nation’s unrelenting commitment to this mission. It’s posted on our 

Facebook page, at https://www.facebook.com/dodpaa/videos/466684510507523. In Hawaii, a very 

moving ceremony was highlighted by U.S. Army MSG Charles McDaniel’s son, Charles, Jr., as the 

keynote speaker. He and his brother, Larry, then placed a rosette next to their father’s name on the 

National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific marble Tablets of the Missing. It’s posted at: 

https://www.dvidshub.net/video/631887/2018-pow-mia-recognition-day. For those who would like 

this year’s National POW/MIA Recognition Day poster, they can be ordered online via our website,

http://www.dpaa.mil/Families/Posters.aspx

The Last B24 - Tulsamerican Premier

Over the past year, PBS NOVA filmed a documentary, entitled The Last B-24. It will air November 

7, 2018, at 9 pm EST on PBS, http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/space/last-B-24.html. The film 

captures both the complex, behind-the-scenes efforts to recover missing crewmen from the 

Tulsamerican, a B-24 bomber that crashed off the coast of Croatia during World War II, by DPAA 

partners (The National WWII Museum, the University of New Orleans, and University of 

Innsbruck) and interviews with family members. The documentary also weaves the work and 

interviews of family members associated with a nearby B-17 loss and also includes the recovery

and identification of Captain Lawrence Everett Dickson, whose P-51 Mustang crashed in Austria

while on a combat mission.

Europe Trip

Next month I will have the honor of speaking at Cambridge American Cemetery's Veterans Day 

Ceremony. Last Veterans Day, I spoke at the American Cemetery in Luxemburg, and I can attest 

first hand to the tremendous respect and honor DPAA’s allies and friends in Europe continue to 

show towards those who fought in World War II (WWII). Later during that trip, I will meet with 

senior government officials from Croatia, Hungary, and Austria to obtain additional cooperation 

regarding accounting for missing WWII U.S. service members as DPAA continues to press for 

increased operations in those countries. 
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Outreach and Communications Overview

VFW National Convention July 21-25, 2018

DPAA Director Mr. Kelly McKeague updated more than 10,000 members of the VFW on the 

current status of DPAA and its worldwide missions. Johnie Webb also briefed the POW/MIA 

Committee and DPAA manned a booth in the exhibition hall where veterans and their families 

stopped by to learn about DPAA and the effort that goes into accounting for DoD personnel lost in 

past conflicts.

American Legion Convention

Representatives from DPAA attended the American Legion’s 100th National Convention in 

Minneapolis, MN, during the week of 26 August where approximately 9,500 members were in 

attendance. A briefing was presented to the National Security Committee that included POW/MIA 

representatives from each state. The floor was opened for questions, resulting in a good exchange of 

information. DPAA’s team also set up and manned a booth in the exhibition hall where veterans and 

their families stopped by to learn about DPAA and the effort that goes into accounting for DoD 

personnel lost in our past conflicts.

Family Member Updates (FMU)

DPAA hosted an FMU in Philadelphia, PA, on September 8, 2018. 324 family members were 

briefed on the status of their unaccounted for loved ones, representing 129 losses. The next FMU 

will be in Greensboro, NC, on November 17, 2018. The full FMU and Annual Meetings schedule 

can be found at: http://www.dpaa.mil/Families/Family-Events/

SOA Reunion

DPAA sent a team to the Special Operations Association’s annual reunion earlier this month. DPAA 

staff briefed members and guests during the SOA/SFA POW/MIA forum on the current status of 

accounting efforts in Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam; provided an update on potentially significant 

discoveries of long sought special operations after action reports; and discussed DPAA’s outreach 

and communications strategies. DPAA staff also interviewed Association members and gathered 

important information that will hopefully contribute to lead development.

Korean War Veterans Association (KWVA) Annual Meeting

DPAA’s Principal Deputy Direct (PDD), Ms. Fern Sumpter Winbush, briefed the annual Korean 

War Veterans Annual Meeting in Orlando, FL, from October 16-18, 2018. Ms. Winbush provided a 

DPAA overview and Korea update briefing at the KWVA board and membership meetings, and our 

lead analyst, Dan Baughman, supported the question and answer session and conducted veteran 

interviews. 

75th Commemoration of the Battle of Tarawa

The American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) will host a ceremony on November 19, 

2018, at 1 p.m. HST at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu. The ceremony 

will commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the Battle of Tarawa and rededicate the memorial’s

Courts of the Missing, which recently underwent a two-year restoration project. Mr. McKeague 
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will attend this ceremony. The Deputy Director for Operations will also serve as the senior DPAA 

official at a repatriation ceremony on Tarawa on the 75th anniversary of the Tarawa assault.

Key Media Engagements 

Media Activity Highlights: 

July 27, 2018 - Local/Regional/National/Global coverage of the DPRK’s unilateral turnover of 55 

boxes of remains purported to be U.S. service members.

July 31, 2018 - BBC's International Radio

August 1, 2018 - Local/Regional/National/Global coverage of the honorable carry ceremony at Joint 

Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam.

August 2, 2018 - Pentagon Press Corps - Director McKeague and Dr. Byrd (VTC)

August 8, 2018 - DPAA held a news conference (38 outlets attended) to kick off the agency's Korean 

War-Cold War Annual Government Briefings held in Arlington, VA.

August 14, 2018 - White House Press Corps - Director McKeague, Dr. Byrd and Dr. McMahon 

Sept. 6, 2018 - Takeout Podcast with Major Garrett

Sept 20, 2018 - Defense Writers Group

September 20, 2018 - President Trump tweeted the news that DPAA had made the first two 

identifications from the 55 boxes of remains. 

September 21, 2018 - POW/MIA Recognition Day coverage

Sept. 21, 2018 - Federal News Radio's "Federal Drive" program

October 22, 2018 - Korean Broadcasting Service - Lab visit and interview with Director McKeague

Partnerships & Innovations (PI) Update

Field Operations 4

th Qtr

 Four (4) – IP

 Seven (7) – EM

Partnership Arrangements 

 Description and number of arrangements implemented in 4

th Qtr (14 total – new partners)

o Six (6) – Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). 

o One (modification) – Grant/ Cooperative Agreement (CA) (agreement between USG and 

a non-federal entity to cooperate to achieve a common end.).

o Two (2) – Partner Project Agreement (PPA) (the more specific, more detailed agreement 

that follows the generic MOU).

o Five (5) – Contract.

 In-Progress Q4 (7 total)

o Seven (7) – MOU.

Partnership Cost Avoidance

 Final estimated cost avoidance for FY18 is $10.4M, realized through 22 executed field 

activities.
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Volunteers

 Active: 19

 In Development: 21

Research

 10 current research fellows include:

o Six (6) historians, 1 underwater archaeologist, 1 archivist, 2 family historians

o One additional historian vacancy and one additional archivist vacancy still open

 In collaboration with DPAA’s lab, developing scientific research efforts with partner 

institutions (Isotopes)

Field Operations Overview

Deputy Director for Operations

I just returned from a very successful trip to multiple countries in our European-Mediterranean 

Directorate’s theater of operation. In our continued effort to pursue international partnerships, I met 

with senior government officials, military chiefs, and university directors in Malta, Italy, and the 

Netherlands to obtain cooperation and support for current and future recovery operations. 

Additionally, I met with senior officials from ABMC Sicily-Rome, one of our focal points for 

WWII disinterments in the European-Mediterranean Theater. The trip concluded with successful 

engagements in Bahrain and Kuwait as we secured important support from the US Navy, US Army 

and Kuwaiti government as we begin the search for one of our five unaccounted-for service 

members from the Persian Gulf War. 

In September I traveled to Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam to participate in annual talks regarding 

FY19 operations in support of our Vietnam War efforts. The talks in both Laos and Vietnam were 

extremely successful. In Laos, we gained support for year-round Stony Beach investigations, 

permission to conduct joint DPAA/partner organization recovery operations beginning in FY20, and 

Laos agreed in principle to increasing JFA size from 65 to 85 personnel starting in JFA 19-2LA 

(pending negotiations on details). In Vietnam, we gained support for four new initiatives: (1) 

increasing team size from 100-125, employment of 7-9 teams per JFA, longer JFAs on a case-bycase basis to close sites, and conduct of minor excavation work during ITs; (2) permission to 

augment DPAA teams with partner personnel in FY19; (3) increased development of partnerships 

within Vietnam, including more training, to improve the capabilities of Vietnamese-led teams; and 

(4) gained direct access to Vietnamese National Archives catalogues.

Next month, I will have the honor of being the guest speaker at the USS MISSOURI Memorial 

Association Veterans Day Ceremony. I will also be speaking at the repatriation ceremony on 

Tarawa on November 20th as we both commemorate the 75th anniversary of the start of the battle 

and start the journey home for several fallen Americans. At the end of November, I will lead the 

US delegation to commemorate the 30th Anniversary of sustained Joint Operations in Vietnam. 

This ceremony will highlight the importance of the relationship forged between our two countries as 

we continue to work together to account for the remaining missing American’s from the Vietnam 

War.

Visa Sanctions on Cambodia, Laos, and Burma

Two weeks ago, the Cambodian Prime Minister, without conditions, lifted his suspension of 
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cooperation on the U.S. POW/MIA mission. The suspension was imposed more than a year ago 

after the U.S. Government (USG) imposed visa restrictions on Cambodia. DPAA plans to excavate 

a loss site in January 2019. Over the summer, the USG imposed sanctions on Laos and Burma for 

failure to accept its respective nationals who have been ordered removed from the United States. 

These sanctions are graduated in nature and may impact future operations, though as of today, 

DPAA has not seen retaliatory measures from either country. The first Joint Field Activity of the FY 

is underway in Laos, and I will be traveling to Cambodia in two weeks to meet with Senior Minister 

Pol Saroeun and Undersecretary of State Lapresse to work through the details of resuming both 

recovery and investigation operations starting in mid-January. Of note, Stony Beach and a DPAA 

representative have been conducting investigations in Cambodia throughout the past year.

Lao Flooding Assistance

In response to a request from the Lao Government to the U.S. Ambassador to Laos, DPAA provided 

excess supplies from Southeast Asia warehouses to assist in the relief efforts in Attepeu Province 

where a dam collapse had caused widespread flooding. The Lao Government, and particularly their 

POW/MIA officials, expressed their appreciation for DPAA’s humanitarian efforts.

Republic of Korea (ROK)

DPAA continues to work closely with our ROK partners. Last month, DPAA repatriated the remains 

of 64 Koreans to the ROK; these remains had been segregated over the years by DPAA scientists 

assigned to the DPAA Korean War Project. As part of an agreement reached earlier this month, the 

ROK Army and the Korean People’s Army (KPA) have begun demining in the DMZ to enable joint 

recovery operations next spring at Arrowhead Hill. In coordination with the DPRK, DPAA is prepared 

to offer basic scientific support to ROK and DPRK recovery operations.

Europe-Mediterranean (EM) Region:

Operations in 4

th Qtr: (July-Sept)

 Investigations 

o Four (4) DPAA teams conducted investigations of multiple sites associated with missing air 

crews

o Germany (three (3) aircraft crash sites)

o United Kingdom (five (5) aircraft crash sites)

o Italy (five (5) aircraft crash sites)

o Romania (five (5) aircraft crash sites)

o Two partner investigations

o Alaska, survey of potential aircraft crash/sunken ship sites off Kiska Island (Project 

Recover)

o Italy, survey of potential aircraft underwater crash sites (Project Recover)

 Recoveries 

o Four (4) DPAA teams conducted excavations of three (3) aircraft crash sites and one 

isolated burial

o Germany, A-26G with one missing crew member

o France, B-17F with two (2) missing crewmembers

o France, underwater, P-47D with one missing crew member (Note: Conducted with support 

from the French Navy, who supplied the diving platform and some team personnel. The 
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remains recovered from this site have already been identified as 2d Lt James Lord)

o Poland, isolated burial potentially associated with a B-17G with seven (7) missing crew 

members 

o Four (4) partner recoveries of aircraft crash sites

o Germany, B-17 with seven (7) missing crew members (Archaeological and Historical 

Conservancy)

o France, P-47D with one missing pilot (St. Mary’s University)

o France, P-47D with one missing pilot (University of Wisconsin)

o Malta, Underwater, B-24 with one missing crew member (University of Malta) (NOTE: 

began as an investigation but shifted to a recovery)

 Operations next 60 days: (Oct-Nov)

o Italy, DPAA investigation of several underwater crash sites

o Germany, Currently conducting one partner excavation of a B-17G with four (4) missing 

crew members (Cranfield University)

o Italy, November excavation of a P-38G with one missing crew member

 Disinterment Operations:

o Exhumed 16 Unknowns in 4

th Qtr from American Battle Monuments Commission 

cemeteries in Europe

o One more exhumation planned before the end of the calendar year

 U.S. – Russia Joint Commission (USRJC) Update

o August, DPAA welcomed Rich Lyda as the Chief of the Joint Commission Support 

Division

o September, Doc Foglesong, the U.S. Side Chairman traveled with Dr. Connell, Acting 

Executive Secretary for the U.S. side, to Moscow for meetings with Col-Gen Vostrotin, 

the Russian Side Chairman as well as U.S. Embassy staff in Moscow

o Plans are being finalized for the 22nd USRJC Plenum to be held in Washington, DC in 

November. Gen Foglesong has agreed to double the number of family and veterans 

group representatives to serve as observers to the Plenum to a total number of four.

Indo-Pacific (IP) Region: 

Operations in 4

th Qtr: (July-Sept)

o Solomon Islands (18-1), 2 RTs, 1 IT

o Papua New Guinea (18-2), 1 IT, 1 Partner IT (University of Queensland)

o Vietnam (18-4), 1x Vietnamese RT, 1x Unilateral Excavation; 1x Underwater IT, 2x 

Research and Investigation Teams

o Laos (18-5), 3x RT

 Operations next 60 days: (Oct-Nov)

o Tarawa (18-1) via History Flight

o Vietnam (19-1), 2x RT, 1x Vietnamese RT, 1x Unilateral Excavation, 1x Underwater IT, 

1x Research and investigation Team, Initial Partner Incorporation (University of Illinois-
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Chicago) 

o Laos (19-1) 3x RT, 1x IT, UXO Mitigation Planning

 Disinterment Operations:

o Punchbowl Cemetery (Hawaii): 26 disinterments (12 - Korea, 14 - WWII)

Scientific Analysis:

Statistics:

FY 2018 Identifications/ Statistics

o Total = 203 accounted forpersonnel

• WWII = 156

• Korean War = 37

• Cold War = 0

• Vietnam War = 10

o The lab had 459 total accessions in FY18

• 71 accessions from field operations 

• 126 accessions from unilateral turnovers 

• 239 accessions from disinterments

• 18 accessions from partners/contractors

• 5 accessions from other sources

Laboratory staff size has grown to 124, counting military, GS, and contractors and including 

two more underwater archeologists for a total of four now. The Lab also received additional 

funding for the Korean War Project and we now have ten scientists working the project. The 

lab continues to innovate new methods of data analysis to cope with the massive projects 

undergoing analysis and to ramp up stable isotope testing as a new test modality. We have 

overhauled our information management system and are working a data integration project with 

AFDIL.

Armed Forces Medical Examiner System – Armed Forces DNA Identification 

Laboratory (AFMES-AFDI):

FY 2018 Stats

o 3,000 Mitochondrial and nuclear DNA Analyses reported to DPAA

o 189 First-time named BTB reports (DNA reports supporting new 

Identifications)

o 530 Addendum reports (additional portions)

o Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) work flow for chemically treated or 

highly degraded samples; the process has been online for two years

o Double throughput last 6 months; 45 samples/month

o Optimized existing workflow to double sample output: 12 
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samples/run 

o Bought 3 new higher through-put instruments: 15-45 

samples/run

o Still only Forensic lab in the world with this capability.

To meet DPAA scope and pace, submitted Unfunded Request (UFR) for 36 new scientists was 

denied. Using existing budget due to optimizations, hired 12 out of the 36 new scientists in Sept 

2018.

Questions and Answers:

American Legion, Freddy Gessner: Thank you for hosting the call. No questions.

Korean War Veterans Association (KWVA) Rocky Harder: 

1). In FY18, how many possible American remains were recovered from South Korea and 

how many have been identified?

Answer: Dr. Byrd: We received one unilateral turnover from MAKRI, but have not yet

identified the remains. There is another set of remains that I will review next week in Seoul

that we expect to send to the lab and identify in the not too distant future.

2.) Are there any Korean War Ops scheduled in China for FY19? 

Answer: RDML Kreitz: There is a WWII loss being investigated but no Korean War losses. 

3). Where do we stand with talking to North Korea about the resumption of joint

recovery operations? 

Answer: Mr. McKeague: We have been passing messages to the KPA. Currently, the Interagency 

is working through the details of the DoD counter proposal to the plan the KPA passed to us. The 

issue is to avoid violating the sanctions that are in place. State and Treasury are helping us work 

through this. Once approved, we will pass the counter-proposal to the KPA and look to schedule

negotiations. 

Special Operations Association/Special Forces Association Mike Taylor: At our reunion

three members of DPAA received the President’s Award. Jack Kull, Southeast Asia Policy

Officer, Matt Kristoff, Vietnam Way analyst, and Steve Thompson, Outreach &

Communications. They have provided exemplary service over the years. This is the highest

given and has only been presented seven times. Previous recipients were JPAC, Ann Mills

Griffiths, Major General Kelly McKeague, and Stony Beach. 

Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), John Towles: No questions. Thank you for your efforts

and let us know how we can help you in your efforts.

Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA), Grant Coates: 

1). Can you please explain the ancestral DNA issue you referred to earlier? 

Answer Dr. McMahon: The technology is similar to commercial products such as
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Ancestry DNA and 23 and Me but works on the degraded remains with which we work. 

Basically it means that any relative within 4 generations of the missing person will be a 

suitable DNA family reference. This will be very helpful in making IDs.

Honor Release Return Moe Moyer: No questions.

Korea Cold War Families of the Missing, Sherra Basham: No questions. Thank you for

what is being done regarding the nuclear DNA testing improvements.

National League of Families, Ann Mills Griffiths: 

1). You seem to have mixed messages regarding linkage of recovery operations in North 

Korea to denuclearization. Are they linked or not? 

Answer Mr. McKeague: Secretary Pompeo has indicated that the two issues are not 

linked. The Secretary’s Special Envoy to North Korea has said he is not bringing it up in his 

discussions. The delays we were referring to are due to the requirement to avoid violating 

the sanctions that are in place as we reimburse North Korea for recovery work and provide

vehicles and fuel for recovery operations. State and Treasury are helping us to get this 

accomplished. 

2). You mentioned that the Korean War Disinterment Project will has seven phases that will 

take five to seven years to accomplish. Can this be collapsed into fewer years so that aging 

family members can get answers sooner? 

Answer RDML Kreitz: We wish we could but many things prevent that. First we have a 

cemetery cap we must live with—we cannot disinter all of the unknowns at once as this would harm 

the cemetery. We also have a State of Hawaii permitting process. We have recently persuaded

them to raise the limit on permits. We will stay with our five (5) to seven (7) year estimate but will 

do so faster if conditions allow.

Korean War POW/MIA Network, John Zimmerlee: 

1). It seems as though the discussion today is all about bones. In light of the Moore

lawsuit, what can you tell us about what you are doing to investigate the cases of live

POWs? 

Answer (provided after the call): Since its inception in 1992, the US-Russia Joint 

Commission on POW/MIAs has aggressively sought out reports of Americans who were 

possibly transferred to the former Soviet Union, and has pursued all leads. In its role to 

provide analytical and logistical support to the USRJC, DoD has maintained a staff of 

researchers in Moscow and Washington, D.C. for the past 25 years. Our researchers have 

traveled the length and breadth of the former Soviet Union, and interviewed thousands of 

veterans and alleged witnesses. The transfer issue was a central theme during every one of 

the interviews and continues to be in our efforts to determine the fate of our missing. A 

primary focus of our archival research has been to identify information related to the transfer

issue. Even during the long hiatus of USRJC activity between 2005 and 2016, DoD 

continued to pursue all leads related to the transfer issue. 

Considerable resources have also been expended to review inmate records at dozens of 
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psychiatric hospitals, special prisons for foreigners, and former Gulag camp sites throughout 

the former Soviet Union. DoD investigators conducted numerous expeditions to examine 

crash sites which allegedly involved U.S. personnel. Throughout the years, there have been 

many media campaigns requesting persons to come forward with any information on 

Americans, both military and civilian, who may have been within the territory of the former 

Soviet Union. The Vietnam War missing list was checked in its entirety in both Russia and 

Kazakhstan. To date, DoD and the USRJC have not been able to substantiate a single report 

of Americans having been transferred to the Soviet Union. Despite herculean efforts to 

thoroughly investigate every report made by various individuals, evidence to verify the 

reports remains elusive. 

Since the reinvigoration of the USRJC in 2016, the transfer issue has been raised with the 

Russian Side at every meeting, and is scheduled once again to be discussed at the 22nd 

Plenum on November 28. One of the important issues to be discussed with Vasily 

Khristoforov, former head of the Federal Security Service archives (old KGB archives), at 

the Plenum is how to gain access to the relevant information in security service archives.

In short, DoD and the USRJC will continue to pursue possible leads and continue to 

champion requests for further archival research in still-classified Russian records and to 

conduct interviews with regard to all credible investigative leads about the possible transfer 

of Americans to the former Soviet Union.

Frank Metersky, Korean War accounting advocate: 

1). Are the K-55 remains individual or comingled? 

Answer Dr. Byrd: We made the first two identifications from remains that were not highly 

comingled. However, most of the remains are comingled. Our next opportunity to make 

identifications should come in the next few months as all of the bone samples have been cut and 

submitted to AFMES-AFDIL and the results are starting to come in.

 

2). Do you have an estimate of the number of individuals represented in the K-55? 

Answer Dr. Byrd: More than 55 however, we need to wait until the first round of DNA testing to 

make an estimate. Slightly more than 500 samples were submitted, and we need the results before 

estimating the number of individuals represented.

3). Who is doing the negotiations for DPAA? 

Answer, Mr. McKeague: When negotiations take place it will be myself and RDML Kreitz. 

Representatives from the State Department and the United Nations Command will be present as 

observers. 

4). Do you have any indications of North Korean cooperation? 

Answer, Mr. McKeague: Yes, I believe the North Koreans are interested in the resumption of 

joint recovery operations with the U.S. They have been cooperating with the Republic of Korea on 

demining in the DMZ that will lead to joint recovery operations between the two Koreas. 

5). Do you know what area the K-55 remains came from? Any Marine loss areas? 
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Answer, Dr. Byrd: The information provided was similar to that in the K-208 turnovers. Usually 

a village or place name or a battle or POW camp was given. There are no locations from the West 

side of the Chosin Reservoir where the Marines fought.