Senator wants Norks to return Pueblo

AP/NY Times:

A senator sees it as a fair trade: a Korean battle flag captured in the 19th century for the USS Pueblo, taken in 1968.

Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo., reintroduced a resolution Wednesday demanding that North Korea return the Pueblo, and he sent a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice suggesting she look into his proposed exchange.

''Since the USS Pueblo bears the name of the town of Pueblo, Colorado, many in our state want to see the vessel returned to its proper home,'' Allard wrote. ''North Korea continues to hint at the possible return of the captured U.S. Navy ship, and I ask that you take action at this opportune time.''

The Pueblo is the only active-duty U.S. warship in the hands of a foreign power. It was taken Jan. 23, 1968, after being sent defenseless on an intelligence-gathering mission off the North Korean coast.

Allard said Colorado veterans of the Korean and Vietnam wars suggested exchanging the flag. It 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. The flag is on display at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md.

The Pueblo ''belongs to the United States Navy and we should pursue all possible options to return her to a rightful resting place,'' Allard said.

Navy records show the Pueblo was in international waters when it was captured, though the North Koreans insist it was inside the Korean coastal zone. One person was killed in an explosion during the attack, and 10 of the 82 surviving crewmen were wounded. All 82 were held 11 months before being sent to South Korea on Christmas Eve.

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North Korea would be wise to take this deal, but history has shown that their leaders are not that smart. The taking of the Pueblo was an act of war that the Johnson administration ignored, because it was during at the time of the Tet offensive and the siege at Khe Sanh. It was probably intended to heighten tensions on the Korean peninsular to make it more difficult for the US to send troops stationed there to reinforce the effort in Vietnam.