A retired South Korean said Monday that U.S. military aircraft sprayed large amounts of Agent Orange over the demilitarized zone in the 1950s to thwart North Korean border intrusions following the war, according to the Yonhap News Agency.
"When I served in the 15th Army in 1955, I saw U.S. aircraft including helicopters spraying the defoliant over the DMZ several times a month," said retired Msg. Eum Do-nam, 77.
The 15th Army is stationed in Cheorwon, near the eastern border with North Korea.
Although the U.S. military's use of Agent Orange in South Korea in the 1960s is widely known, Eum's remarks are seen as the first account in South Korea that USFK also used the toxic chemical in the 1950s.
"After the aircraft passed over, grasses and trees along the sprayed area glowed red and died," Eum said.
In the meantime, the defense ministry will start this week a large-scale environmental survey of former U.S. military bases, officials said Monday.
Seoul and Washington are jointly investigating claims by retired American soldiers that in 1978 they had helped dump large amounts of the toxic chemical underground Camp Carroll in Chilgok, 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul.
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