ENEMY POWER

Press, Volume LXXXVII, Issue 26605, 15 December 1951, Page 7

ENEMY POWER

“POINT OF BALANCE IN THE AIR”

TOKYO, December 14. General James Van Fleet, Allied ground commander in Korea, said yesterday that the Allies were bringing enough additional troops into Korea to meet any foreseeable Communist ground attack. “The Bth Army will never be pushed out of Korea as far as the comparative ground strength is concerned between the enemy and ourselves. “The point of balance lies in the air. If the enemy throws in his Manchurian potential and we don’t have enough additional air power to combat that threat, then the Bth Army might be jeopardised. At the present time we do not expect that possibility.” General Van Fleet said the Communists were getting stronger every day of the current lull in fighting and had been strengthening themselves even before the lull occurred.

“It is reasonable to believe that the enemy is building un his strength lust as the United Nations forces are doing. We are not hitting the enemy as hard now as we were several months ago and, therefore, he'is not suffering as much. He is much stronger in the air than he was two months ago. and it is reasonable to assume that his ground forces are also considerably strengthened by replacements.”