Evening star., 1951-11-26
IA Foreign Policy for Americans
Taft Discusses Soviet Menace in Far East,
BIomes U. S. Policy for Attack on Koreo
By Senator Robert A. Toft
CHAPTER 10.

CHAPTER 10.
l Domination of Korea by the
; Russian Communists would cer-
tainly be threat to the security
of Japan.
The administration decided,
however. that it would withdraw
all troops from Korea and would
not undertake to defend Korea by
the use of American soldiers. As
la long term policy this was gen.
orally in accord with the princi-
Piles I have outlined.
I Because of the Importance of
Korea. however. there should have
been no question that the situa-
ton demanded all-out arms aid
to provide the South Koreans
with a complete defense against
attack from the north. Perhaps
it even justified a definite notifi-
/ cation. at least to the North ko-
reans. that if they chose to attack
they would find themselves at war
with the United States and that
we would return with see ard air
forces to fight that war.
AchesOn Statement Cited.
But the administration not only
failed to adopt either of these
two policies, but it went very much
further in a definite statement of
policy by Secretary Acheson in
January. 1850. saying that except
for Japan. Okinawa and the Phil
ippines We could not assure the
rest of the Far East against az
tack. l believe that our Govern
ment invited the invasion of
Korea by the weakness of its pol
icy in these respects.
At the time we withdrew from
Korea we declared that We would
give armed assistance to Korea.
The Mutual Defense Assistance
Act of 1949 authorized the Presi-
dent to furnish military assistance
to South Korea. Assistant Secre-
tary Webb of the State Depart
ment testified specifically before
both House and Senate commit
tees that the appropriation sought
was for the purpose of helping the
Koreans to fight external aggrcs-
sion. The bill was passed in Oc-
tober. 1949. BY June. 1850. not a.
single bit of aid had been given,
except merely some small arms
that had been left behind when
we withdrew from Korea.
Apparently some one in the
State Department had changed
the policy of giving the South Ko-
reanS sufficient arms with which
to deter external aggression The
President admitted later, in his
statement about Korea. that the
government forces of Korea were
armed only to prevent border
raids and preserve internal Sc
curity"
Intent of Policy Questioned.
Perhaps the policy was changed
because some one was afraid that
if the South Koreans had tanks
and airplanes they would attack
the North Korean Communists.
Therefore. we gave them only
small arms. which would be USE
less for offense and also for de-
tense if the North Koreans at
tackled them. 1t was certainly a
weak policy. To what extent it,
was again the result of a delib-
crate policy of not antagonizing
the Communists in Asia 1t is diff
1cult to say at the moment.
That was a direct invitation to
the North Koreans to attack. 1t !
was an invitation to Soviet Russia
to believe, as it did, that here was
a soft spot where communism
could move in without difficulty
I think the policy. or lack of pol
icy, Of the administration brought
on the Korean war.
Then the President, on June Is
1850, in one of those spasmodic
actions which are more or less
characteristic of this administra-
ton, entirely reversed the Ameri-
can policy which he had previ-
ously announced. When he moved
into Korea after the North Ko-
reanS attacked I had much sym-
pathy with his reversal of posi-
ton.
Weakness of u. N. Cited.
We went into Korea on the
theory that the United Nations
was going to punish aggression in
order to prevent aggression in the
future. I think it is a sound
principle. if you have an lnterna-
tional organization with the abil-
ity to do the job. The difficulty is
that we were relying upon a weak
reed in the United Nations. The
United Nations Charter Is. so weak,
with the provision for the veto,
that as a matter of fact here is
no legal means of preventing ag-
gression.
We got little aid from other
members of the United Nations.
Our own forces were so weak and
limited that the country we were
saving from aggression was prac-