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US, DPRK Agree to Expand Efforts to Find American MIAs
The United States and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) have agreed to expand joint operations to recover the remains of Americans listed as missing in action (MIA) in the Korean War, a US official said Saturday.
The two sides agreed to significantly expand the size of the U. S.teams, increase the length of U.S. activities and add areas of operations, Alan Liotta, who led the US delegation at the four-day talks with the DPRK here, told reporters at the end of the talks.
He said next year's operations, which begin in April, would now include areas around the Chosin Reservoir and areas near Kaechon in addition to the current areas in Unsan and Kujang counties which are about 100 kilometers north of the DPRK capital, Pyongyang.
He described this year's negotiations, the sixth since 1996 and the second held here this year, as "pleasing."
The U.S. official said this year's negotiations also agreed that U.S.teams would be expanded to 28 members and be allowed to conduct 10 operations in three areas, each lasting 32 days as compared with 26 days this year.
The repatriation of remains would follow immediately after that, he said.
The official said 65 sets of remains were recovered in the five joint operations conducted this year in Unsan and Kujang to add to the 42 sets recovered in the previous four years.
The two countries also agreed to establish a procedure for sharing records, data related to witness interviews, potential burial locations and other information not previously made available by the Koreans, he said.
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