The Korea War, 70 Years Ago, The Times, Chester PA

Korean War Weekly Front Pages

22 November 1952 – 28 November 1952

The Times, Chester PA

There would be no “Oriental Yugoslavia.”

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Russia’s firm rejection of India’s compromise Korean peace plan appeared to have killed hopes that an armistice would result from the current session of the United Nations General Assembly. Despite the Soviet foreign minister’s imperious “thumbs down” on the middle-road Indian proposal, however, the United States stood ready to accept it, with certain vital modifications, and its proponents hoped to have the assembly pass it with a resounding majority. Few saw a chance that Communist China might become the “Oriental Yugoslavia” and split with Moscow to accept the Indian plan. But western observers reasoned that heavy support for a truce proposal evolved by a major Asiatic power would provide a major weapon for propaganda in Asia generally and in China particularly.

An American Air Force sergeant was held incommunicado on a charge of trying to sell secret information about the F-86 Sabrejet fighter to the Communists in Korea. Court martial charges were filed against him; he was a veteran of nine years of service in the Air Force. His arrest on 21 September climaxed six weeks of work by Air Force intelligence officers. It was the first case of alleged conspiracy with the enemy by Americans serving in Korea. He was specifically accused of “attempting and conspiring to sell military intelligence to the enemy.” Conviction could mean life imprisonment. In addition, the Air Force accused him of 16 counts of black marketing with military scrip in Korea. He was arrested with an accomplice who passed him the information about the fighter, but court martial charges were not preferred against the accomplice. The Air Force said he cracked under the strain, although he had no previous record of mental instability; a board of Air Force doctors subsequently pronounced him insane.

(Photo courtesy newspapers.com, Chester Times)