Chances were bleak from the moment the US Navy let the NKoreans hijack the ship in international waters without a fight in the first place. Bruce
http://www.examiner.com/a-718264~State_Department_says_chances_bleak_for_ret urn_of_USS_Pueblo.html State Department says chances bleak for return of USS Pueblo By JENNIFER TALHELM, The Associated Press WASHINGTON - The State Department says it can't negotiate the return of the USS Pueblo from North Korea while the United States is trying to get the communist nation to drop its nuclear ambitions. A State Department official turned aside a suggestion by Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo., that the U.S. demand the North Koreans return the Pueblo, taken in 1968. Allard suggested offering to swap a Korean flag captured in the 19th century in exchange for the ship. Allard said his constituents are eager to see North Korean return the Pueblo, which is named for a Colorado town and is the only active-duty U.S. warship in the hands of a foreign power. In a letter to Allard last week, assistant secretary of state for legislative affairs, Jeffrey Bergner, said there are substantial barriers to getting the Pueblo back. The two countries have no formal diplomatic relations, Bergner wrote. Also, the North Koreans haven't offered to return the ship. "The State Department sees little near-term prospect of negotiating the return of the USS Pueblo," Bergner wrote. Allard hasn't given up, spokesman Steve Wymer said. Allard introduced the resolution in Congress last month demanding that North Korea return the Pueblo. He will wait and see what happens and follow up in a few weeks, Wymer said. "Sen. Allard wants the Pueblo back," Wymer said. "Anyhing he can do to make that happen, he will look into it." The Pueblo was taken Jan. 23, 1968, after being sent defenseless on an intelligence-gathering mission off the North Korean coast. Navy records show it was in international waters when it was captured, though the North Koreans insist it was inside the Korean coastal zone. The North Koreans display the ship as a trophy. U.S. officials have been told North Korea's leader, Kim Jong Il, decreed that the ship should be used for "an anti-American education." The U.S. government believes the Pueblo is being held illegally, Bergner wrote to Allard. North Korea has occasionally suggested to private citizens that it would trade the ship for high-level bilateral talks or for large compensation, Bergner wrote. But the U.S. rejects the idea of such a trade because it would legitimize North Korea's action. Advocates in Colorado argue that the United States should at least return the flag to the Koreans as a show of good intentions. The flag was captured from Korean Gen. Uh Je-yeon in an 1871 battle after American ships attempting to open Korea to trade invaded Kanghwa Island, outside Seoul. It is on display at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: osint@yahoogroups.com Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
