Evening star., 1950-07-01
Korea Naval Blockade
Wont Stop Supplies
By Land From Russia
BY the Associated Press

The United States-British naval
blockade of Korea is expected to
help land operations against the
invading Communists, but it won t
keep them from getting military
supplies from Russia.
In ordering the naval ring to
be thrown about the embattled
peninsula yesterday, President
Truman apparently had two main
objectives in mind:
/. To prevent the attacking
North Koreans from making any
more landings on the southern
coast.
2. To keep the sea lanes open
for the movement of American
troops and supplies from Japan.
But the blockade probably will
have little effect on the shipment
of any supplies Russia wants 10
send to the Communist troops.
Road Systems Tied In.
In the days when Japan con-
trolled both Manchuria and Ko-
rea, she tied the road and rail
systems of the two countries to-
gether and angled both in a
northerly direction toward Rus
sian borders. At the time the
Japanese were preparing for a
showdown with the Soviets in ST.
IBERIA.
Thus a fairly good land route
exists for shipment of supplies
into North Korea from Russian
territory.
The American Navy expects to
make the blockade as tight as
ships can forge it.
Naval men say that it will not
be necessary to steam fighting
ships up and down the whole
Korean coast.
Vladivostok IS Miles Away.
They believe the same effect
can be achieved by throwing a
naval Gordon across the top of
the Yellow Sea between Dairen in
Manchuria and the Northwest
Korean port of Hello.
Similarly, Seishin. near the ex-
treme northeastern tip of Korea,
could be isolated by a sea block
ade from the big Russian base at
Vladivostok, only rs miles away.
Asked whether blockading Amer
lean vessels would operate near
Vladivostok, a Navy official said:
1--WE believe in the freedom of
the seas outside the three mile
limit"
While the blockade may not
hamper Soviet shipments to the
Korean Reds, the Air Force may
succeed in doing so now that the
"out of bounds" sign has been
lifted from the 38th parallel which
divides Korea.
Mr.. Truman's announcement
that American planes henceforth
will strike at military targets in
the invaders home territory was
expected to set off a series of air
attacks on North Korean roads
and rail lines.
Six Railroads Reach Border.
Six railroads reach the Man
churian border from North Korea.
Only one of these is not directly
connected with a rail line on the
Manchurian side-and the one
exception links with an all
weather motor road.
All of these Korean railroads
are tied in with the north-south
and east-West rail systems started
in Manchuria by the Russians be-
fore the Russo-Japanese war and
later completed and extended by
the japanese.
The Manchurian rail system, in
turn, connects directly with Rus
Sia's TranS-Siberian Railroad.
Since the war little has been
reported about Russian railroad
building activity in Eastern ST.
IBERIA. But informed military men
here do not doubt that Russia has
kept all of these lines of COM
munication in good condition.
1t also is believed that the
Soviet Union has closed gap of
about Is miles between the old
Japanese-built railroad to Seishin
and the Russian lines converging
on Vladivostock.