The Wilmington morning star., 1946-01-06
Interpreting
The News
BY JAMES D. WHITE
Associated Press Staff Writ.

wv
SAN FRACISCo, Jan 50
China has no occupation troons in
Korea, but geography dictates
vital Chinese interest in what han
pens there.
Chinese Manchuria lies to tbs
west, and Korea dominates ths
shipping of the Yellow sea and tbs
Gulf of Chilli. From the Russian
standpoint, Korea flanks the sea Of
Japan, and from northern Korsa
you can see the sometime Soviet
naval base at Posiet bay, and the
mountainous coast leading up fl
Vladivostok, Russia's PRINCIPAL
Pacific port.
This week there has been cutie
show in Seoul, the Korean CAM.
tai, with certain Koreans agitating
for independence. This agitation
follows the Big Three decision in
Moscow to place Korea under a
four-power trusteeship of Russia
China, America and Britain. After
five years Korea will become in.
dependent under a government
which is to be established on
provisional basis in the meantime,
Call For independence
But this week in Seoul some Ko.
reans yelled for independence
right away. To make the point
clear they brandished knives and
pursaaded other Koreans to march
| in parades and demonstrations.
They heaved rocks at American
occupation troops and scared Ko.
rean servants away from Ameri.
can jobs.
Behind this reaction is the Ko.
rean political picture. 1t contains
these elements, at least:
/. The provisional government"
of Kim Koo, who recently was
flown back to Korea in an Ameri.
can plane from Chungking, where
his unrecognized regime had de-
veloped in the wartime capital of
China's national government.
Kim Koo, now called the 'presi-
dent of this group, presumably
succeeds without explanatory
DR.. Syngman Rhee, exiled Korean
leader who spent many years in
America until he returned to Ko-
rea shortly befort Kim Koo got
there. Shortly after Rhee arrived
he startled many people by de-
claring that in some respects he
sided with communists and others
who wanted land reform. Since
then little has been heard CT him,
and the talk is mostly of Kim
Koo.
Kim Koo took this stand: If his
provisional government is rccog-
nized, and if opposition arises
(such as from the leftist "peo-
pies republic" group, Kim said
he would deal with them 'just as
Chang Kai-shek is suppressing
the Yenan government" (of COM
munist China).
This brings us to ca the ''peo-
pies republic" which says it isn't
a government but which the
Americans found already set up
when they got into their half Of
Korea after Japan surrendered. 1t
is made up of local Koreans who
stayed throughout the japanese
occupation and who say they want
to redistribute the land to peasants
at the expense of wealthy Kor cans
who worked with the japanese.
Reports from Seoul say this
group supports the Moscow de-
cisions on trusteeship had MOTH
ing to do with the strong-arm DEM
constructions this week in Seoul
which are laid to Kim Koo's
group.
3. The unknown factor is what
group, if any, the Russians are
supporting. Kim Koo says Korean
communists are not organized.
The northern half Of Korea re-
mains sealed off under Russian &C.
cupation. The moscow agreement
stipulates that Russo-American
military commission shall be es-
tablished soon to coordinate the
two halves of the country. 1t now
is seriously separated with little
contract between the agricultural
south under the Americans and
the industrial north held by Rus
STA.
China has no troops in Korea
But Kim Koo, fresh from Chung
king, looms large in Seoul as Ko-
rean factions try to get together
to set up the provisional govern
ment agreed upon at Moscow.