CALL ON NORTH TO SURRENDER

Press, Volume LXXXVI, Issue 26220, 18 September 1950, Page 7

CALL ON NORTH TO SURRENDER

U.N. Forces Near Seoul (N .Z.P.A. Reuter— Copyrig ht) (Rec. 10 p.m.) TOKYO, September 17. enemy troops are concentrated SOuth Korea where

dwS'^bmb'rfSe'e"" 8 « Inare advancing towards the heart of Seoul. h H ” Ver and

American Marines have captured Rimpo airfield, 12 miles north-east of Inchon, and one report said that Allied forces were already using it. The airfield was captured against relatively light resistance. United States Marines took 300 pris-

oners during the early stages of the drive from Inehon. The Marines received a slight check only at the village of Soganmi, about three miles riflLl. Inchon - A few Communist were Quickly driven from the buildings and surrounding bridges.

General MacArthur’s View

Briefing correspondents before the landings on the Korean coast General MacArthur said: “War depends normally on two things. One is getting men to fight, the second is getting supplies for the men to fight with. “In the present situation the enemy has committed a great mass of his forces in Southern Korea. He depends on North Korea to supply additional replenishment of r.en and supplies. All those resources, both of men and supplies, channel through one particular area—and that area is Seoul and Inchon. “From Seoul radiates all the supply lines that function in Korea. It Is the •very heart of the situation. To the north-east is that great valley with its railroad lines that lead to Soviet Russia and Vladivostok. To the northwest is that great valley channel rail end road system that leads to Communist China and Harbin. “Those two great channels come down to Seoul and from Seoul radiate in veins, west, south, south-east and east. It is a great distribution point. “Everything the enemy shoots, and all the additional replacements he needs, must come down through Seoul. We are going to try to seize that distribution area so it will be impossible for the North Koreans to get any additional men or more than a trickle of supplies into the present combat area.

“If that can be accomplished and the enemy is caught between the two wings of our forces he will be subject to the additional combat effort of both those forces working in co-operation, and he will be deprived of reinforcements and supplies. “If that can be accomplished these forces will sooner or later distintegrate and cease to be a co-ordinated fighting army. “The enemy has enough forces to fight the perimeter, or he has enough forces to turn on us and fight to the north. He has not enough to fight both ways.

“J* h ? pulls l’ is forces from the pericrack. the 10th Corps, General Walker will be on his heels. Il bls forces in the south the 10th Corps will be on his heels.

“If we can accomplish what we aim at his condition will rapidly become critical. He has superior ground forces—that is, in numbers—but he lacks the other two great components —sea power and air power.

“His ground power gives him the initiative, but we are going- to wrest that initiative from him by bringing to effect our own two superior components.

We will apply sea power and we will apply air power to the maximum or this type of amphibious effort and by employing these two great advantages ,we are going to wrest the ground and the initiative from him.”