North Korea returns remains of war dead to US ... with one dog tag
DECADES after the end of the Korean War, the remains of dozens of presumed US war dead have begun their journey home following a repatriation ceremony in South Korea.
North Korea handed over the remains in 55 boxes and allowed a US military transport plane to move them to the US Osan Air Base near Seoul in South Korea.
While it was an apparent goodwill gesture by North Korea towards the United States, the return comes amid growing scepticism about whether the North will follow through on its pledge of nuclear disarmament.
Hundreds of US and South Korean troops gathered at a hangar at the Osan base for the repatriation ceremony, which included a silent tribute, a rifle salute and the playing of the US and South Korean national anthems and dirges in front of the UN flag-covered metal cases containing the remains.
The remains were then moved in grey vans to an airfield where US and South Korean soldiers loaded them one by one into transport planes.
The planes will fly them to Hawaii, where they will undergo an in-depth forensic analysis, in some cases using mitochondrial DNA profiles, at a Defence Department laboratory to establish identifications.
US defence secretary Jim Mattis said last week that the return of the 55 boxes was a positive step but not a guarantee the bones are American.
A US defence official said it will probably take months if not years to fully determine individual identities from the remains. The official also said North Korea provided a single military dog tag with the remains. The official did not know details about the single dog tag, including the name on it or whether it was even that of a US military member.
Vice President Mike Pence, the son of a Korean War veteran, is to fly to Hawaii for what the military calls an “honorable carry ceremony” marking the arrival of the remains on US soil.
The repatriation is a breakthrough in a long-stalled US effort to obtain war remains from North Korea.
About 7,700 US soldiers are listed as missing from the 1950-53 Korean War, and 5,300 of the remains are believed to still be in North Korea.
“The remains received from North Korea are being handled with the utmost care and respect by professional historians, forensic scientists, uniformed personnel and government officials,” the Us-led UN Command said in a statement. It said it “never leaves troops behind, living or deceased, and will continue the mission of repatriation until every service member returns home”.
The bones’ return was part of an agreement reached during a June summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Mr Trump thanked Mr Kim for the return.
During the summit, Mr Kim also agreed to “work towards complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula” in return for Mr Trump’s promise of security guarantees.
But the Washington Post reported US intelligence agencies have obtained evidence indicating North Korea is continuing to build long-range missiles.