Open letter on the origin of the nuclear issue

in the Korean Peninsula

The Propaganda Bureau of the Central Committee of the National Democratic Front of South Korea issued an open letter on the origin of the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula. The open letter reads.

Now the US second fuss about the "north Korean nuclear issue" evokes grave apprehensions among the Koreans and the international community as days go by.

Warhawks of Washington press Pyongyang to scrap its nuclear program, while running amuck to internationalize their policy to stifle it by bringing the alleged north Korean nuclear issue to the UN Security Council and advocating "multilateral talks". They maintain a haughty attitude that they would have dialogue but would not hold negotiations with Pyongyang, while distorting the issue.

Behind the curtain of dialogue ad, they have worked out the "Contingency Plan" and are reinforcing its armed forces and latest war equipment in and around the Korean Peninsula for a preemptive nuclear strike on north Korea.

The situation of this peninsula is strained to a volatile point of a nuclear war which will cause total ruin of the entire Korean nation.

The nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula originated from the mass deployment of nuclear weapons in and around south Korea by the United States and its ceaseless threat of nuclear attack on north Korea.

The Central Committee of the National Democratic Front of South Korea, in the name of all the south Korean people, scathingly denounces the Bush group for threatening the existence and sovereignty of our nation with the intensified nuclear racket against north Korea and releases this open letter to disclose the origin of the nuclear issue which focuses public attention.

1. Nuclear armament in and around south Korea

Without putting Asia under our control, we may lose the world and without taking the sword named Korea, we cannot cut off Asia as we wish - this was the aggressive essence of the US Korea policy.

The United States has promoted nuclear armament in and around south Korea in line with its dream to conquer north Korea with nukes it leans upon as an almighty stick for world supremacy, so far from learning a due lesson from its ignominious defeat in the 1950-1953 Korean War.

(1) Nuclear deployment policy in south Korea

Right after the Korean War, the United States proclaimed south Korea as an "operational field" vital for its supremacy over Asia and the world and made it a policy to convert it to a nuclear base.

On March 17, 1955, then US vice-president Nixon said that the weapons they had used in the Korean War and the Second World War were all outdated, so they should use tactical atomic weapons. (Chicago, March 18, 1955. UP)

At south Korea-US military talks on February 12, 1957, they discussed the issue of arming the US forces here with nukes and officially announced the beginning of nuclear armament on July 15 that year. (Joint yearbook 1983")

The US policy of turning south Korea to a nuclear forward base has been ceaselessly consolidated through the proclamation of the front defense area (the region of nuclear arms) in the 1970s, formation of the south Korea-US-Japan military alliance and the air-ground war strategy in the 1980s, the strategy of retaliatory nuclear threat during the post-Cold War era in the 1990s and conversion of the Europe-priority strategy to the Asia-priority one and the advent of the Bushism seeking preemptive nuclear strikes in 2000.

(2) Nuclear armament in south Korea in Cold War era

For conversion of south Korea into a nuclear base, the US expelled the watchdog of neutral nations from south Korea on June 9, 1956 and unilaterally scrapped the D item, Article 13, of the Korean Armistice Agreement which prohibits introduction of modern weapons in Korea from outside in June 1957.

It officially announced the introduction of nukes by the US Forces Korea on Jan. 29, 1958 and then deployed Honest John nuclear missiles and 280-mm and 8-inch howitzers. (Yonhap News (Internet) - Dec. 3, 1999)

In the 1960s, it shipped atomic and guided weapons including Nike, Hercules and Hawks and nuclear mines into south Korea and more than 1,000 nuclear weapons were deployed in south Korea in the mid-1970s.

In this regard, US Rep. Ronald Delums said at a Congress session in June 1975 that the United States deployed over 1,000 nukes and 54 planes for transport of nuclear arms in south Korea. (Jiji Press - June 20, 1975)

The nuclear armament of the USFK reached the acme in the 1980s.

Americans proclaimed the Korean Peninsula as a "field of showdown of strength in the 1980s", while deploying nuclear weapons in south Korea.

American warhawks additionally deployed 133 nuclear bombs and 21 nuclear mines of new type in the DMZ. Worse still, they introduced 56 neutron bombs and 94 neutron shells for 8-inch and 155-mm howitzers, which are rejected as the "weapons of devil", saying that it was regrettable for them not to have produced and used them in the Korean War.

Former US Defense Secretary Weinberger proclaimed in February 1981 the deployment of neutron bombs in south Korea, and an Austrian paper exposed in March 1984 that the Pentagon shipped many neutron bombs into south Korea.

In the mid-1980s the United States introduced medium-range Pershing-2 nuclear missiles and different kinds of nuclear cruise missiles including Tomahawk and Cruise and dispatched a Lance unit to the USFK in February 1987.

And the United States deployed 72 F-16s capable of carrying nuclear bombs (MBC - Apr. 26, 1984) and other nuclear delivery means including B-52s.

The Korea Report published in Japan in its December issue in 1983 reported that Reagan discussed with Chun Doo-hwan about the movement of B-52s from Guam and Anderson to south Korea during his visit to south Korea in November that year, and a document the US Air Force presented to the US House Appropriation Committee's sub-committee for military build-up on Mar. 11, 1987 revealed that there was a US nuclear air base in south Korea, first in Asia.

According to the minutes of the 125th session of the south Korean National Assembly in 1985, US nukes deployed in south Korea, including nuclear bombs and shells, nuclear war heads, neutron bombs and shells, nuclear mines and knapsacks totaled up to 1,020. But it was a reduced number.

The US nuclear arms in south Korea were four times in density as compared with those in NATO nations and thousands of times of the Hiroshima-type atomic bomb in the explosive power as of 1990.

South Korea has one nuclear weapon in every 100 square kilometers, densest in the world.

(3) Nuclear armament of south Korea in post-Cold War era

The US basic strategy (called "nuclear umbrella strategy") for nuclear preemptive strike on north Korea has never changed even in the post-Cold War era.

As the Cold War ended and the Korean nation and the international community toned up their voices for withdrawal of nukes from south Korea, Washington announced withdrawal of short-range tactical nukes from the ground and naval bases of south Korea on September 27, 1991 and had the Seoul regime proclaim that there was no nuke in south Korea in December that year. It was a lie.

The US has obstinately rejected the world's call for investigation of nuclear withdrawal and Pyongyang's offer for simultaneous nuclear inspection of south and north Korea.

Even after signing the 1994 Geneva agreement with north Korea, the United States has persistently pursued nuclear armament.

Former US Defense Secretary Perry who flew to Seoul in November 1995 reaffirmed the US commitment to provide a nuclear umbrella to south Korea at the 27th south Korea-US annual security consultative meeting.

And all the uranium shells were moved from the US base in Okinawa to south Korea between 1995 and 1996.

The uranium shells used in the Kosovo War and the Gulf War under international criticism contain uranium 235.

In March 1997, a spokesman for the US Forces Command in south Korea recognized that the US forces "have uranium shells for an emergency in Korea." And on August 15 that year, a Pentagon spokesman confirmed it in a statement. (The Hankyoreh - May 17, 2000)

After the historic April 2000 agreement for the inter-Korean summit was published, the United States deployed two B-1s in Osan contrary to the mood of detente in Korea. (Japanese daily Akahada - May 24, 2000)

According to the US Scientists Association, the United States introduces over 360 W88 nukes, a sort of nuclear weapons developed to attack underground bunkers of north Korea, and is developing the latest nuclear war heads which can reach scores of meters underground, under Bush's order.

Thus, south Korea has been reduced to the largest nuclear arsenal in the Far East.

In US nuclear bases in Uijeongbu, Dongducheon, Chuncheon, Osan, Gunsan, Daejeon, Gwangju, Sacheon, Jinhae, Busan, Ulsan, Daegu, Mt. Taebaek, Mt. Palgong, Mt. Dobong and other places, a large number of nukes are deployed against north Korea, enough to exterminate the Korean nation hundreds of times.

In Gunsan alone, there are scores of US naval strategic planes and 36 arsenals of underground nuclear bombs, plus nuclear bombs for F-4 and F-16, 203-mm and 155-mm nuclear bombs and nuclear war heads for Lance and Honest John. (Book "Nuclear Crisis and Korea" - 1988)

Dissatisfied with this, the United States is pushing ahead with the construction of new nuclear bases here.

The Hwasun Naval Base being built by the south Korean military in Jeju Island is said to be a proposed site for the US nuclear base in Okinawa.

The US nuclear weapons in south Korea little differ from unlocked conventional weapons.

Former US Army Chief of Staff Meier said in January 1983 that the decision to use nukes in Korea is easier than in Europe where they should agree with the five-member nuclear advisory committee of NATO and the authority is under the US administration. The Mainichi Shimbun of Japan on June 4, 1981 reported that the authority for use of nukes in the Pacific area has been transferred from the US president to the US Pacific Forces Commander and field army commanders.

The bellicose Bush administration, in particular, designated north Korea as a target of preemptive nuclear strikes and officially stated that the United States can deliver a preemptive nuclear attack on north Korea even though it does not possess nukes and even though the United States does not sustain a nuclear strike.

Consequently, US nuclear arms are not deterrence but offensive weapons.

(4) Nuclear armament around the Korean Peninsula

US nuclear bases around the Korean Peninsula are all for attacking north Korea.

The United States has about half of its 20,000 nukes and most of strategic forces in the Asia-Pacific region around the Korean Peninsula. In this region, there are 560 military bases and facilities, over 1,000 planes including strategic bombers, 6 aircraft carriers and 34 nuclear submarines, 200-odd warships and 6,500 nuclear arms in all.

The Seventh US Fleet armed with 1,800 nukes moved long ago its strategic point from the west Pacific to the East Sea of Korea.

Enterprise, Kitty Hawk and other nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, nuclear-powered submarines and other nuclear warships often anchor at Busan, Jinhae and other harbors of south Korea.

Nuclear-powered submarines visit south Korean ports on 15-20 occasions on the annual average under the pretext of military exercises.

In Hawaii, there are the US Pacific Forces Command, the Pacific army, air force and navy commands and other strategic commands of military services, along with hundreds of warplanes and warships including nuclear-powered marines and cruisers.

B-52s based in Guam regularly fly over the Korean Peninsula and its outskirts.

In Japan there are a large number of nuclear arms plus over 50,000 US troops, the US Fifth Air Force Command and the Seventh Fleet Command.

On April 24, Dulles told the US National Security Council, "We have enough deterrence against invasion of south Korea by the Communist force. It is composed of the US nuclear combat power in Okinawa."

Needless to say, the US nuclear forces based in Japan, together with the USFK, are the taskforce for invasion of north Korea.

The nuclear weapons and facilities based around the peninsula are to attack major objects of north Korea and are ready for action at any time.

In addition, the United States additionally deployed 2,000 troops, 24 B-1s and B-52s, eight F-15s and a U-2 reconnaissance plane to south Korea, Japan and Guam and put the south Korea-based US air force on a semi-war state of DEFCON-3.

The United States has piled up nuclear weapons in and around south Korea, watching for an attacking chance against north Korea. It is really a brigandish logic that Americans talk about the alleged "nuclear program" of north Korea.

2. Ceaseless Nuclear Threat to North Korea

The United States poses ceaseless nuclear threat to north Korea since it has turned south Korea to the largest nuclear forward base in the Far East and the outskirts of the Korean Peninsula to a strategic nuclear arsenal for attacking north Korea.

(1) Completion of nuclear war plan

It is well known to the world that the United States had planned to use nuclear weapons during the Korean War.

According to a report released in December 1951 by the Johns Hopkins Operation Research Office dispatched to the US Far Eastern Forces Command, the United States had planned to drop on the Korean Peninsula six 40KT-class (equivalent to 40,000 tons of TNT) atomic bombs doubling the Hiroshima-type atom bomb. (Monthly Chosun - May 1999)

Besides, it was revealed that Bradley sent a letter to Eisenhower on May 19, 1953, conveying the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for strategic and tactical use of nuclear weapons, and Eisenhower supported the view at a National Security Council meeting next day.

The nuclear war plan has been supplemented constantly after the Korean War.

According to the classified operational plan "8-53" and its supplement dated Nov. 2, 1953 and the operational plan "10-54" in 1954 of the US Far Eastern Forces Command, the UN Forces Command mapped out a nuclear war plan to make ground, marine and aerial strikes on north Korea with 50-200 nuclear bombs and the 280-mm atomic gun developed by the United States in January 1953 in case of recurrence of the Korean War. (Monthly Chosun - May 1999)

The well known war scenarios drafted in the 1980s and 1990s such as the "9-day war plan", "5-day war plan", "3-day war plan", "120-day war plan", "OPLAN 5027" and "OPLAN 5027-98" and the recently revealed "Contingency Plan" are all nuclear war plans against north Korea.

The criminal character of these war scenarios is well illustrated in "OPLAN 5027-98".

This plan includes various excuses of the nuclear issue and human rights problem for a war. According to the plan, the United States schemes to mobilize more than 600,000 troops of the Pacific Forces Command and the mainland, aircraft carriers and warships of the Seventh Fleet and uptodate strategic and tactical bombers to attack the major points of north Korea, deal preemptive strikes in case of emergency and charge upon the Amnok and Duman river regions.

This adventurous war plan supposing even a stage of "occupational rule" vividly shows the aggressive purpose of the United States.

(2) Menacing remarks on use of nukes

Washington warhawks have used nuclear blackmail against north Korea according to the nuclear war plans.

During the Korean War, Truman said that the United States could use atomic bombs in the war. At talks with British Prime Minister Churchill on Dec. 5, 1953, Eisenhower stated that the United States would use atomic bombs in case the Korean War restarted. (The Dong-a Ilbo - Jan. 4, 1984)

Following Nixon and Ford, then US Secretary of Defense Schlesinger said in 1975 that they would use nukes to strike the heart of the enemy in case of a war on the Korean Peninsula.

In November 1983 Reagan said that Washington would not exclude the use of nuclear weapons in case of emergency on the Korean Peninsula. (KBS-1 - Nov. 13, 1983) In the 1983 defense report, Defense Secretary Weinberger asserted that the United States should attack north Korea together with its military allies in Northeast Asia and deliver a nuclear strike on the north.

In 1994 then chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Shalikashvili and commander of the Seventh US Fleet declared at a press conference that Tomahawks would be loaded on nuclear submarines for forward deployment and these submarines would perform independent operation against north Korea.

On Sept. 27, 1997 the then deputy assistant secretary of defense of the United States said that it was time for the United States to have a willingness to perform a surgical operation on cancer-like north Korea even by pouring 247 billion dollars of defense budget. In 2000 Republican presidential candidate John McCain said that the United States should overthrow north Korea militarily when certain conditions ripen. (The Hankyoreh - Feb. 22, 2000)

The nuclear blackmail on north Korea has become more undisguised by the Bush administration.

Bush singled out north Korea as part of an "axis of evil" and "target of preemptive nuclear strikes" last year. Also he stated that the United States can use nuclear weapons against the north and ordered to develop small-sized tactical nukes.

On Jan. 29 this year he dubbed the north Korean government as a "lawless and repressive regime", which is interpreted as declaration of war against north Korea.

Never unpardonable is the US nuclear threat to north Korea.

(3) Escalation of anti-north Korea nuclear war drills

The US plan for preemptive nuclear strikes has been ceaselessly supplemented and specified through anti-north Korea nuclear war drills.

Typical are the south Korea-US joint military exercises Team Spirit, Foal Eagle, Ulji Focus Lens and RSOI.

Annual Team Spirit between 1976 and 1993, following the Operation Focus Retina in 1969 and the Operation Freedom Bolt in 1971 was an overall nuclear test war and preliminary nuclear war based on Washington's idea of "limited nuclear war" and its theory of "strike on heart" and "preemptive nuclear attack".

Referring to "Team Spirit-83", former US rear admiral LaRocque said that the drill involving the US Strategic Command supposed a nuclear war. The Nucleate Times of the United States reported that US troops have completed the capability of tactical nukes through this exercise.

RSOI, which has been staged in place of Team Spirit since 1994, is an anti-north Korea nuclear war exercise for promptly mobilizing overseas-based American troops and equipment in case of emergency. Since 2001 it has been expanded to a large-scale drill involving even Japan-based US troops and GIs under the US Pacific Forces Command.

Ulji Focus Lens launched in 1976 is a typical nuclear war drill involving huge armed forces of aggression in south Korea, Japan, Guam and the US mainland.

Foal Eagle which began in 1961 is a large-scale mobile exercise involving not only the US Forces Korea but also the US armed forces in the Pacific region. From 1999 the venue moved northward to the truce line dividing Korea into the south and the north.

In March last year the belligerent Bush government conducted a large nuclear war drill combining RSOI and Foal Eagle, which was participated in by nearly 700,000 troops, three times as many as in largest Team Spirit in 1989.

Large-scale anti-north Korea nuclear war exercises numbered more than 10,000 during the period after the Korean War up to 1999 and involved more than 20 million troops in all.

According to an official announcement, anti-north war drills nearly doubled both in number and in scale in 2001 as compared with the previous year.

The United States has staged anti-north Korea nuclear war exercises in its mainland too.

According to a classified document of the Pentagon, nuclear war-maniac Reagan called in over 1,000 nuke-experts at an underground operation room of the White House in March 1982 to stage a secret nuclear war commanding exercise on the map named "IB-League" supposing a nuclear war on the Korean Peninsula.

A military document released by the Nortillus Institute of the United States on Sept. 12 last year wrote the Pentagon conducted a mock drill of nuclear bombs dropping by F-15s under the 4th Combat Air Division in North Carolina according to an anti-north Korea nuclear war scenario in the first half of 1998.

This moment too, the Pentagon continues mock drills for preemptive nuclear strikes on north Korea.

The reckless nuclear war exercises augment the crisis on the Korean Peninsula.

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Facts prove that the nuclear crisis on the Korean Peninsula is not originated from the groundless "north Korean nuclear threat" but from the US strategy of domination over the peninsula and its nuclear threat to north Korea based on the hegemonist policy of strength.

Nevertheless, Washington perverts the truth and is hell bent on anti-north Korea plot in a bid to conceal its nature as the ringleader of the "north Korean nuclear issue" and realize its long-cherished yet foolish ambition to strangle the north.

The United States has created the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula and Washington is under obligation to solve the issue.

The United States must learn a due lesson from its ignominious defeat in the anti-north nuclear racket in the 1990s.

The way out is clear.

First, the United States, the chieftain of the nuclear crisis in Korea, should give up the maneuvers for internationalizing the north Korean nuclear issue and come to the negotiation table to conclude a nonaggression treaty with north Korea.

Second, Washington should stop circulating the rumor about "north Korea's nuclear program" but open its nuclear weapons deployed in south Korea to the public and accept international inspection.

Third, the United States must withdraw its nuclear weapons and troops from south Korea without delay.

This is the best way to solve the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula and secure peace and stability of Northeast Asia and the rest of the world.

We are sure that governments, political parties and organizations of different countries and international organizations will see the root cause of the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula and extend positive support to our nation in its struggle to remove the cause.

The NDFSK, together with all people, will further intensify the anti-US, anti-war and anti-nuke struggle to bring earlier an independent and peaceful society free from nuclear arms and danger of war in this land.

Propaganda Bureau

Central Committee

National Democratic Front of South Korea

Seoul

February 11, Juche 92 (2003)