Evening star., 1953-04-10
Reds Propose
Resumption Of
Truce Talks
No Hint of Yielding
On Main Point; Sick
POWs to Be Traded
By the Asseeiofsd Press

BY the Assoeiofed Press
MUNSAN. Korea, Saturday,
April 1.-THE Communists
agreed yesterday to trade sick
and wounded prisoners beginning
about April 81. then proposed
resumption of the long-stalled
armistice negotiations.
Both sides were expected to
sign today the agreement calling
Only Peoce in Korea Will Reveal Fote
Of 9,lS6 Missing Americans. Pose A-3.
South Koreon Troops Toke Stroteeic
Hill OVeTun by Reds. Poee A-3.
~--
for the exchange of $500 ailing
Reds for 600 Allied prisoners, of
which 120 are Americans.
But in calling for a return to
the armistice table, the Com
munist officers gave no sign of
yielding on the principle of
forced repatriation of some $4,000
prisoners who balk at returning
to Red rule. It was Allied refusal
to return such prisoners that
ruptured the negotiations last
October 8.
Communist liaison officers at
Panmunjom. in proposing the
resumption, declared "the prin-
ciple of repatriation of all prison.
ers Of war; after an armistice
is unShakable."
Reply to Clark's Letter.
And the Communists reiterat-
ed that "the Korean Chinese
side does not acknowledge that
there are prisoners of war who
are allegedly unwilling to be re-
patriated."
The Communists proposal,
which they called Every i'm
portant," was in reply to a letter
April 5 from Gen. Mark Clark,
the United Nations Far East
commander.
Gen. Clark had asked for more
details Of the compromise plan
for an armistice which was pro-
posed March 80 by Premier Chou
En-lai of Communist China.
Actually, the Communist re-
ply was mainly a restatemept of
Premier Chou's proposal except
to make. even clearer that the
Reds by persuasion, or other
means, expect to bring back all
balky Chinese and North Ko-
reanS.
Three Points Repeated.
The letter to Gen. Clark from
Gen. Nam II, senior Communist
1egotiator, restated Premier
Chou's three main points:
l.. Let all prisoners go home
who chose to return.
2. Turn over to neutral coun-
try-yet unnamed-all prisoners
who are listed as not wanting to
return to their homelands.
8. Let the Communists give
"eXplanationS" to prisoners
''afraid" to return home.
The communists went into
little more explanation of Pre-
mier Chou's third point this way:
"Our side maintains that these
captured personnel of our side
who are filled with apprenhen-
sion and are afraid to return
home as a result of having been
subjected to intimidation and
oppression should be handed
over to a neutral state, and
through explanations given by
our side gradually freed from
apprehension, thereby attaining
just solution to the question of
repatriation"
Signing Authorized.
Gen. Clark last night author
lied signing the disabled prison.
ers agreement after interpreters
had completed Chinese, Korean
and English tranSlations and the
final draft had been transmitted
to Tokyo.
Under the pact, the Com
munistS said they would send
home 120 Americans, 20 British,
IS French, Turks, Canadians,
Greeks and Dutch and about $50
South Koreans at the rate of
100 daily.
The Allies agreed to hand over
5,100 North Koreans and TOO
Chinese at the rate of 500 daily.
The Communist proposal was
similar to the India plan ap-
proved overwhelmingly by 81 of
60 nations in the U. N. December
3 but rejected by the Reds.
= Gen. Clark asked the Reds
Sunday for full details of the
Chou plan. This was one of
two conditions he set for re-
suming full armiStice negotia-
tions. The other was agreement
now reached-on exchanging
disabled prisoners.
The allies had expressed dis
appointment on the small num-
ber Of prisoners to be returned
by the Reds. But they did not
let this disappointment block an
agreement.