Foreign Relations of the United States, 1964–1968, Volume XXIX, Part 1, Korea

175. Telegram From the Department of State to the Embassy in Korea¹

Washington, February 11, 1968, 2335Z.

113671. TOVAN 12. Eyes only for Vance from Rusk.

1. Please ask Ambassador Porter to show you my Nodis 110828² as background for your talk with President Park.

2. The views contained therein are a fair reflection of the problems of public and Congressional opinion toward Korea which we would have here if the Koreans themselves are not careful. This type of material should not be used by you as a direct threat from one President to another but it should be used with great force to expose the kinds of problems which our President will face in trying to maintain our support for the Republic of Korea. On that basis, you can be very tough indeed because the problems are real.

3. If the matter of reduced ROK participation in Viet-Nam comes up, you should not hesitate to point out that that would require a reduced US participation in Korea. A ROK division in Viet-Nam can only be replaced by a US division now in Korea. Further, Viet-Nam is where the battle is, and from a military point of view the problem of infiltration can be handled by the large forces present in South Korea. Of course, if North Korea launches an all-out invasion, that is another ballgame. But it is not in our interest, or in the interest of the Republic of Korea, to have another all-out war in Korea. Hence, it is folly for the South Koreans to take steps which would translate an infiltration problem into general hostilities. It’s easy to get into such hostilities but very hard to bring them to a successful conclusion.³

4. If President Park attempts to extract commitments which go beyond the terms of our Treaty of Alliance, you should state quite simply that no alteration of that treaty lies within the constitutional power of our President. The treaty stands as agreed and is the primary source of the Republic of Korea’s ability to maintain itself as a secure and independent nation. It is elementary, for example, that our President cannot remove the phrase “in accordance with its constitutional processes” from a Treaty of Alliance. We cannot entertain suspicions about the loyalty of the United States to its alliances at a time when we have just lost 900 killed in a ten-day period in Viet-Nam in the course of demonstrating our fidelity.

5. Your object is to combine an assurance to President Park of our steadiness and seriousness of purpose with an understanding on his side that we, too, have national interests engaged in the safety of his country and in peace in Northeast Asia. We expect from him the same degree of cooperation that he expects from us. If we each have internal public problems, which differ somewhat, the point is that our two Presidents should in consultation decide how to proceed in a way to deal with both sets of problems. We cannot give overriding priority to his problems if, by doing so, we undermine the very basis of US support to the Republic of Korea.

6. All this means (a) we must maintain our war effort in Viet-Nam (b) we must use available channels at Panmunjom to free Pueblo and crew (c) we must act together to insure security of Korea (d) we must not take action on our side to convert infiltration problem into a major war if it can be avoided and (e) we must each give leadership in our own countries to press and public opinion in the interest of our common purposes.

Rusk

1. Source: National Archives and Records Administration, RG 59, Central Files 1967–69, POL 33–6 KOR N–US. Secret; Immediate;Nodis; Cactus. Drafted by Rusk, cleared by Rostow and Houdek (S/S), and approved by Rusk. The TOVAN and VANTO designator was used to identify cable traffic to and from Vance in Seoul.
2. Document 157.
3. President Johnson also wanted to instruct Vance to “request Korean permission for Westy [Westmoreland] to redeploy Korean forces if necessary; and indicate urgency of requirement for extra Korean division in Viet Nam.” (Memoranda from Rostow to President Johnson, February 12; Johnson Library, National Security File, Country File, Korea—Pueblo Incident, Vance Mission to Korea(B), February 9 to 15, 1968) Rusk opposed adding the issue to those already to be raised by Vance. The President agreed “most reluctantly” to send this cable without an instruction to raise the question of the additional division. (Memoranda and draft telegram, February 12; ibid., State Department Cables, Vol. II, February 1968)