The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1953-04-08
COMMIES READY TO SEND $50
AMERICAN SOLDIERS HOME
BY ROBERT 8. TucKMAN

| MUNSAN, Korea R-The Com
munists today said they are ready
to send home 600 disabled prison
ers of war--a figure that includes
only $50 Americans ard other u. N.
soldiers. The chief Allied negotiator
asked for recount, and added:
Il have hopes we viii get more.
Rear Adm. John C. Daniel told
the Communists their figure was
incredibly small" and asked
''that you have these figures re-
viewed" He said later, however,
that Il have no reason to believe
at the present time that they are
not acting in good faith. .
The U. N. Command offered to
return $500 sick and wounded Com
munists-5, 100 North Koreans and
700 Chinese. This is Z per cent Of
the 80 900 pro-Communist prisoners
and 4 per cent Of all prisoners
held by the Allies. The Communist
figure of SOC is 5 per cent of the
IL, 200 to 1900 u. N. and Korean
prisoners the Reds have said they
hold. Both sides named lower
level staff officers to work out
administrative details of the ex-
change. The U. N. Command APP
pointed Col. Willard B. Carlock of
Galveston, Tex; Air Force Col.
Douglas Kairns Of Riverside, Calf.
and South Korean Col. Lee 500
Yung. The Communists named
North Korean Col. Lee Pyong II
and Chinese Col. Wang Ching.
The staff officers went into ses-
sion Immediately after the Iiaison
groups adjourned Tor the day.
Daniel asked the Communists for
complete revised text of the
whole draft agreement on trans
fer Of sick and wounded so the u.
N. Command could consider any
changes ''in one package and ar
rive speedily to the items which
are controversial" The Commu-
nists have agreed to the main
points Of Daniels plan, and said
they viii submit their versions Of
the rest.
The Allied protest on the Com
munist offer was the stiffest state
ment yet made in the three-day-old
conference. 1t was the first note
Of discord in the otherwise smooth
negotiations which Tuesday result
ed in agreement in principle to
exchange disabled P0Ws.
North Korean Maj. Gen. Lee
Sang Che told Daniel, Eve have
offered the figures of sick and in
jured prisoners Of war only after |
we have checked the matter in
detail. Accordingly, / cannot find
any reason why the figures are
incredibly small"
Daniel told newsmen the figure
is controversial. "
1T depends on what category
you put them in he said. I'm
other words. how sick is a man."
OF the 500 ailing prisoners the
Communists offered TO return, $50
would be South Koreans. The rest
would be Americans, Births
French, or other u. N. soldiers. |
U. N. sources said possible rea-
sons for the relatively few prison
ers the Reds will return include: |
/. The Communists are not as |
liberal IN defining sick and wound. |
ed prisoners--a reason suggested |
by Daniel.
2. The Reds may claim some Of |
the Allied troops they hold have |
embraced communism and decline |
s. A final, and more dismaying |
explanation, may be found in the |
Reds policy of "liberating'' cap
tured soldiers at the front. The |
Communists have captured many |
more u. N. troops than they admit. |
Some Allied estimates place the |
total at 5000.
More than a year ago, at Pan |
munjom, the Reds explained the
discrepancy by saying large num-
bers Of captured y. N. troops
South Koreans-were
released at the front.
Allied officers believe most Of |
these men were drafted into the
North Korean Army.
Since any disabled captises would |
hardly be drafted for war service, /
TIE z. N. might reasonably expect /
to find higher proportion Of sick !
and injured In the Red camps than
woald be normal If the Reds had /
all their prisoners.
II the Reds actually captured /
50 600 more Allied troops than they
have ever seeounted for. the /
United Nations applying the Reds
swn proportion 81 S per cent I
might expect b find about $50
more disabled Allied soldiers than
The GO admitted by the Reds.
The talks Wednesday lasted /
more than an hour. They /