Evening star., 1950-07-25
Inquiry Urged 10 TX
itaryResponsibiIit\
Prior 10 Korean War
Macarthur Roises Issue
In Saying Defense
Was a New Mission.
By David Laurence

Gen. Macarthur has completely
disassociated himself from any re-
sponsibility for the defense OF
Korea prior to the aggression by
the North Koreans.
This step is significant because
1t means that some day Congress
will have to place the blame else
where for the failure of adequate
United States forces to be In the
Far Eastern area. The exact words
Of Gen. Macarthur are to be found
in a message telegraphed to Presi-
dent Truman last week. Mrs. Tru-
man made a brief reference to that
message during his recent broad
cast and the full text of the com
munication was subsequently made
available.
Since the message itself was
concerned primarily with Korean
operations, the pertinent para
graph about responsibility for the
unpreparedness Of America In the
Far East was generally overlooked.
Here Is what Gen. Macarthur
said:
81 do not believe that history
records a comparable operation
which excelled the speed and pre-
cision with which the 9th Army
the Far East Air Force and the
7th Fleet have been deployed to q
distant land for immediate COM
mitment to major operations. II
merits highest commentator fol
the commanders, Staffs and units
concerned and atteStS to their
superior training and high state
Of readiness to meet any even
tua1ity.
Completely New Mission.
"This finds added emphasis in
the fact that the Far East Com
mand, until the Presidents great
pronouncement to support the
epochal action Of the United Ma
tions, had no slightest RESPONSE
bility for the defense of the free
republic Of Korea. With the Presi-
dents decision, it assumed a. COM
pletely new and added mission"
The foregoing second para
graph quoted could not have been
inserted by the general without
purpose. Possibly it was to re-
fute the bitter attack which was
made on General Macarthur by
q former cabinet officer of the
Roosevelt administration, writing
recently in the New Republic.
But, whatever the reason, Gen
eral MacArthur's statement opens
up new avenues Of discussion. Fol
If the Far Eastern Command
wasn't responsible for military
contingencies that might arise ir
Korea, who was responsible? Wa.
1t the Navy or the Army or Ali
Force or the Joint Chiefs Of staff
In Washington?
Complicated Procedure Now.
There was q time when, weeks
ahead Of q criSis-the moment the
newspapers began making mention
OF any possible trouble in areas
where American interests were not
far away-the Secretary Of the
Navy would walk over to- the
Secretary Of State and ask If
there would be any objection to
sending a cruiser or a battleship
to patrol somewhere near the area
where there might be dangers Of
friction.
Usually the Secretary of State
would say. he had no objection
provided the ships didn't get too
close to cause any speculation as
to the reason for their presence.
So the Secretary of the Navy
would station ships two or three
days sailing distance away-but
they would be handy. Today a
carrier task force or two Is the
equivalent Of the cruiser or battle
ship Of yesteryearS.
Nowadays, however, under ''uni.
fication." the procedure is fa,
more complicated and clumsy. The
Secretary Of the Navy doesn't &c
direct to the Secretary Of State al
all. He has to lay such q matter
before the Joint Chiefs Of staff.
After they find out how much
money the Secretary of Defense
viii allot to them, the Chiefs have
to decide what ships the Navy
shall or shall not have in commits
sion.
The matter of what areas shall
or shall not be defended has to 70
before the National Security Coun-
Gil, which meets rarely. It takes
persistent Secretary Of the Navy
to get anywhere. BY this time.
the whole problem can be lost in
q maze Of red tape and complex
"uniflcation" machinery. In this
instance, nothing at all was done.
Everybody's business was evidently
nobody's business.
Inquiry Needed for Answer.
1nasmuch as the Air Force en-
thusiasts promised that all wars
would start certain way-namely
by atomic bomb attacks, with
B-36's knocking out the enemy In
. few dayS-the Navy wasn't per-
nnitted to have carrier task forces
to patrol troubled areas in the
Far East even II 1t had a Secre-
tary Of the Navy who wanted TO
keep such forces or q division of
Marines stationed near the danger
zones In the Pacific.
The question of why adeduats
naval forces and Marines to han
die a mission in Korea were not
on hand, either in the Philippines
or at bases in Okinawa or even
In waters near Japan, is one that
should soon be answered by a non
partisan board of inquiry. Such
an investigation is essential If
America is to develop a system of
eommand-civilian and military