DMZ War and lessons from Cold War
By Chun In-bum
Seventy years ago, the Korean War was halted by an armistice, and South Koreans enjoyed a standard of peace and stability that enabled them to achieve both political freedom and remarkable economic development. During the 70 intervening years, there have been serious challenges to the stability and security of Korea ― but perhaps none as serious as the DMZ War in the late 1960s, although history has paid little attention to this conflict or to those who made the ultimate sacrifice.
A recent article appearing on
HistoryNet, written by John D. Howard,
details the North Korean infiltration of 1968, the sole purpose of which was to assassinate South Korean President Park Chung-hee. In doing so, Howard opened a page in history that has been described as “the second Korean conflict that has drifted into obscurity, a curious episode, a footnote to the Vietnam era.”
Military historians now refer to this conflict as the DMZ War, denoting the military conflict that raged along the Korean DMZ from 1966-69, exploding briefly again in the summer of 1970 before finally subsiding ― in which an aggressive North Korea attempted to take advantage of South Korea's relative poverty and political instability, along with America's increasing military commitment in Vietnam, to foment an insurgency in the South, drive the Americans from the peninsula and unify Korea by force.
Since taking power, North Korean dictator Kim Il-sung had become obsessed with uniting the two Koreas under communist rule, and he turned to unconventional warfare to destabilize South Korea, initially setting 1966 as the campaign start date. By late 1966, however, the United States was completely immersed in Vietnam, where its military commitment already exceeded 300,000 and was increasing steadily.
Fearful that events in Korea would jeopardize support for the Vietnam War, the United States downplayed the conflict unfolding in the Korean DMZ. Gen. Charles H. Bonesteel III took command of all United Nations forces in Korea on Sept. 1, 1966, and his charter from the Secretary of Defense contained explicit instructions not to adversely affect the Vietnam effort.
This resulted in the suppression of all news involving threats from North Korea. Information about North Korean military hostilities became classified and was kept from both the media and the public of the U.S. and South Korea. In addition, the theater was in a poor state of readiness. Most U.S. helicopters had been sent to Vietnam, and modernization plans for Korea were on hold. Shortages of spare parts had left many vehicles non-operational.
The beginning of armed hostilities can be traced to a speech given by Kim Il-sung in October 1966 ― which acted as the starting gun for a North Korean campaign of nighttime forays across the Military Demarcation Line (MDL), firefights along the barrier fence, the attempted ambush of U.S. patrols and nonstop attempts to infiltrate North Korean agents. These armed provocations across the DMZ by the North Koreans specifically targeted U.S. forces ― as part of Kim Il-sung's scheme to drive a wedge between the Americans and their South Korean hosts.
1967 saw a sevenfold increase in firefights, with 150 occurring in the U.S. sector alone. Sixteen GIs were killed and 51 were seriously wounded. The ROK Army suffered more grievously with 115 killed in action and 243 wounded. A total of 228 North Korean soldiers were killed.
The DMZ War reached its peak when a North Korean military offensive was launched in January 1968 ― occurring in tandem with North Vietnam's Tet Offensive. A North Korean commando unit penetrated a U.S.-controlled sector of the DMZ, cut their way through the barrier fence, assembled in the mountains south of the DMZ, donned the uniforms of a South Korean Army unit and made their way to Seoul with the objective of assassinating President Park Chung-hee. They made it to within a couple of hundred meters of the Blue House before being discovered, prompting a firefight in the streets of Seoul. A few days later, North Korea seized the USS Pueblo in neutral waters, imprisoning its captain and crew and holding them hostage for the following 11 months.
Finally, on April 15, 1969, a U.S. Navy EC-121M aircraft on a reconnaissance mission was shot down by a North Korean MiG-21 over the East Sea. All 31 Americans (30 sailors and 1 Marine) on board were killed, constituting the largest single loss of U.S. aircrew during the Cold War era.
Official casualty figures for the U.S. and South Korea during the DMZ War were as follows: 299 killed and 550 wounded for South Korea, and 106 killed, 111 wounded and 83 captured (USS Pueblo) for the U.S.
In the fall of 1969, the communist dictator ordered a decrease in offensive activity and purged the NKPA leadership. In the end, Kim's attempts were unsuccessful, and the DMZ War was largely forgotten ― until being brought to light recently by the surviving members of the U.S. Army's Second Infantry Division. We, who enjoy the fruits of their sacrifice, must not forget that freedom is not free.
Chun In-bum served as a lieutenant general of the ROK Army and commander of Special Forces Korea.