Clinton Offers Regrets for No Gun Ri

W A S H I N G T O N, Jan. 11, 2001 -- U.S. President Clinton today expressed deep regret for the death 50 years ago of dozens of South Korean refugees shot by U.S. troops near thevillage of No Gun Ri.

The expression of regret, however, fell far short of theformal apology and admission of guilt some Korean officials hadsought. It followed a 15-month investigation into the KoreanWar incident on July 26, 1950.

"On behalf of the United States of America, I deeply regretthat Korean civilians lost their lives at No Gun Ri in lateJuly, 1950," Clinton said in a statement in which he offeredhis condolences to those who had lost loved ones.

U.S. Defense Secretary William Cohen later released areport from the Army's Inspector General on the incident, whichdetermined that U.S. soldiers killed or injured an "unconfirmednumber" of Korean refugees as they withdrew under pressure inthe vicinity of No Gun Ri.

"The passage of 50 years has reduced the possibility thatall of the facts can be known about the tragic incident thattook place in the vicinity of No Gun Ri in South Korea," Cohenread from a prepared statement.

The incident occurred in the chaotic first days of theKorean War with ill-equipped and badly prepared U.S. forces inretreat from the North Koreans.

"In the early weeks of the war, U.S. troops were young,under-trained and unprepared for the battle tactics of theNorth Korean forces," said Cohen, who refused to take anyquestions after reading his statement.

In a Statement of Mutual Understanding agreed by the UnitedStates and Korea, the Koreans reported an "unverified" numberof 248 civilians killed, injured or missing.

No Evidence of Mass Graves or Remains

The report said the U.S. team believed the number to bemuch lower than the Korean claim and said an aerialreconnaissance photograph of the area taken on Aug. 6, 1950showed no indication of human remains or mass graves.

While neither side could agree on the numbers killed, thejoint statement spoke of "diligent and conscientious" bilateralefforts to find out what had happened and Clinton highlightedstrong ties between the two nations.

"As we honor those civilians who fell victim to thisconflict, let us not forget that pain is not the only legacy ofthe Korean War," the president said.

Cohen said in its review of events at No Gun Ri, the Armyhad interviewed more than 150 U.S. citizens and examined more than1 million documents in a bid to uncover what had happened.

At no time did the report acknowledge outright that U.S.soldiers were responsible for the killings but it did highlightthe persistent North Korean policy of infiltrating refugeegroups with the aim of breaking lines of defense.

No Compensation To Be Paid

Charles Cragin, principal deputy assistant secretary ofDefense for Reserve Affairs, said the North Koreans had ahistory of posing as civilian refugees and then attackingmilitary forces from the rear.

"Refugee population control was a major challenge," Cragintold reporters after Cohen read his statement.

No compensation will be paid to the families of refugeesbut Cohen said as a "symbol of our deep regret," the UnitedStates would build a monument in honor of those Koreancivilians who died in the war and set up a scholarship fund.

Cragin said some lawyers for some of the victims' familieshad approached the Defense Department for compensation but thePentagon did not believe this was the type of case wherepayments would be made.

"Unfortunately in the fog of war and in war, innocentcivilians die," he said.

Asked whether any legal action would be taken against U.S.troops involved in the No Gun Ri incident, he said the U.S.team found nothing that "rose to the level of criminality."

"It was the loss of life by civilians who found themselvesin the middle of a battlefield during a combat action when aU.S. military force was withdrawing under pressure," he said.

The events at No Gun Ri first came to light in September1999, in reports by The Associated Press that later won thePulitzer Prize.

Since then, however, the picture of what occurred has grownconfused. Although all sides accept the incident took place, akey source for The Associated Press reports admitted that hehad fabricated his account.