TEXT: KARTMAN 6/17 REMARKS TO HOUSE PANEL ON POW/MIA ISSUE
(U.S. seeks fullest accounting of missing Americans)

Washington -- The United States is working with Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Korea, and China to obtain the fullest possible accounting for missing service personnel, according to Charles Kartman, deputy assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs.

"Obtaining the fullest possible accounting for our missing is the American government's highest priority," Kartman said in June 17 remarks before the House International Relations Committee.

According to Kartman, U.S. efforts have focused on Vietnam, with over 1,500 Americans unaccounted for in that country.

"We have consistently emphasized to the Vietnamese that obtaining the fullest possible accounting of our missing from the Vietnam War is our highest priority in our relations with Vietnam," he said. "Every senior American official who has met with Vietnamese government representatives has stressed this point in order to ensure that there can be no misunderstanding of our position."

As Vietnam has worked with the United States to account for missing service personnel, the United States has moved forward to normalize relations with Vietnam, Kartman said.

"One of the most important of these areas is economic normalization. On March 10, the President waived the Jackson-Vanik amendment for Vietnam and on June 3 he submitted his determination in support of a renewal of his waiver authority for Vietnam," he said.

Kartman stressed that an extension of the waiver for Vietnam is in the interest of the United States.

"The Jackson-Vanik waiver is the next step in the normalization of bilateral economic relations," he said. "It maintains the availability to American firms of the trade promotion and investment support programs of the Export-Import Bank, Overseas Private Investment Corporation, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. These programs enable American companies to compete in the potentially lucrative Vietnamese market with foreign companies that receive similar assistance from their governments.

"More importantly, the engagement of the U.S. in Vietnam through these programs, diplomatic contacts and American business encourages Vietnam's integration into world markets and regional organizations. The ties created are a positive force for regional stability," he continued.

Kartman added that the United States is also negotiating a bilateral trade agreement with Vietnam. Such an agreement, in conjunction with the Jackson-Vanik waiver, is a prerequisite for granting most-favored-nation (MFN) trading status to Vietnam.

Following is the text of Kartman's remarks, as prepared for delivery:

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TESTIMONY OF
CHARLES KARTMAN
DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE
FOR EAST ASIAN AND PACIFIC AFFAIRS

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

JUNE 17, 1998

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I am pleased to speak with you today on U.S. policy on the POW/MIA issue in Vietnam and elsewhere in East Asia and the Pacific. This is an opportune time to discuss POW/MIA accounting in light of the upcoming annual meeting of the National League of Families. Particularly in the case of Vietnam, I believe it is useful to review our progress as you consider renewal of the Jackson-Vanik waiver for Vietnam. In addition to Vietnam, I will review our POW/MIA accounting efforts elsewhere in Asia: in Laos, Cambodia, Korea and China. While I will discuss our policy in the area, Mr. Smith will provide details on our activities.

VIETNAM

I would like to begin with Vietnam, which is for obvious reasons the focal point of our accounting efforts. There are still over 1,500 Americans unaccounted for in Vietnam, as well as another 500 from neighboring countries.

We have consistently emphasized to the Vietnamese that obtaining the fullest possible accounting of our missing from the Vietnam War is our highest priority in our relations with Vietnam. Every senior American official who has met with Vietnamese government representatives has stressed this point in order to ensure that there can be no misunderstanding of our position.

Vietnam understands well the importance of this issue to the American government and people and has been providing a high level of cooperation to us in our accounting efforts over the last several years. It was this excellent cooperation that enabled us to establish diplomatic relations in 1995 and to develop normal relations in other areas of mutual interest. I will discuss some of these areas in which we are normalizing in a moment, but first I would like to summarize where we are on POW/MIA accounting.

On March 4 of this year, President Clinton issued a determination that Vietnam has been "cooperating fully in good faith" with us to account for our missing. This was the third time the President has validated Vietnam's cooperation. There are four areas that the President has identified to measure our cooperation. The following represents data as of June 6:

1) Concrete results from efforts by Vietnam to recover and repatriate remains

-- We have conducted 30 Joint Field Activities in Vietnam since 1993.

-- 233 remains have been repatriated and 97 remains identified since 1993.

-- Vietnamese teams have provided reports regarding their unilateral investigations of 115 cases.

2) Continued Resolution of last known alive priority cases.

-- Of 196 persons associated with "last known alive" cases in Vietnam, fate has been determined for all but 43. The fate of five individuals on this list was determined in May, 1998.

-- The cases have been resolved or remains identified of 34 individuals, 11 in the last five years.

-- USG has resolved special remains cases involving 15 individuals, reducing the initial list of 98 individuals to the current 83. The special remains list is a sample of cases for which the USG has evidence that the Vietnamese government at one time possessed remains of American servicemen that were unaccounted for as of 1993.

3) Vietnamese Assistance in implementing trilateral investigations with Laos.

-- Since the 1994 agreement establishing the mechanism for U.S.-Vietnamese-Lao trilateral investigations, 22 Vietnamese witnesses have participated in operations in Laos.

-- In October, 1995, witnesses provided information leading to recovery and repatriation in January, 1996 of remains associated with a cases involving eight unaccounted for Americans.

-- In October, 1996, another witness provided information that led to the recovery of remains associated with a case involving four missing Americans.

-- Vietnam has identified 32 witnesses for participation in future operations in Laos.

4) Accelerated Vietnamese efforts to provide all POW/MIA related documents

-- Since the creation in 1994 of Vietnamese unilateral search teams the Vietnam Office for Seeking Missing Persons (VNOSMP) has provided documents in 12 separate turnovers totaling 300 documents that consist of 500-600 untranslated pages.

-- VNOSMP has conducted unilateral research in 19 provinces.

-- Over 195 oral history interviews have been conducted, in addition to several hundred completed as part of JFA's.

-- About 28,000 archival items reviewed and photographed since January 1993 by joint research teams.

These concrete results are indicative of substantial progress in POW/MIA accounting. None of this would have been possible without extensive Vietnamese cooperation.

Ambassador Peterson's presence in Hanoi is a priceless asset in pursuing our POW/MIA accounting goals. As a former POW, he has a unique credibility and demonstrates his commitment to the issue every day. We could have no better advocate in Hanoi. He has forged valuable ties with Vietnam's leadership that produce dividends on many issues of importance to us.

Cooperation is a two-way street. As Vietnam has worked with us to account for our missing, we have moved forward to normalize relations with Vietnam. One of the most important of these areas is economic normalization. On March 10, the President waived the Jackson-Vanik amendment for Vietnam and on June 3 he submitted his determination in support of a renewal of his waiver authority for Vietnam.

Extension of the waiver is in our interest. The Jackson-Vanik waiver is the next step in the normalization of bilateral economic relations. It maintains the availability to American firms of the trade promotion and investment support programs of the Export-Import Bank, Overseas Private Investment Corporation, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. These programs enable American companies to compete in the potentially lucrative Vietnamese market with foreign companies that receive similar assistance from their governments.

More importantly, the engagement of the U.S. in Vietnam through these programs, diplomatic contacts and American business encourages Vietnam's integration into world markets and regional organizations. The ties created are a positive force for regional stability.

Insofar as the objectives of the Jackson-Vanik amendment are concerned, renewal will substantially promote freedom of emigration from Vietnam. In the lead-up to the President's grant of a waiver in March, the prospect of a Jackson-Vanik waiver was an important factor last October in encouraging Vietnam to modify its processing procedures for the Resettlement Opportunity for Vietnamese Returnees (ROVR). Vietnam dropped its requirement for ROVR applicants to obtain an exit permit prior to interview by INS. This change greatly facilitated implementation of ROVR. At the end of April this year, Vietnam similarly modified its procedures for processing former reeducation camp detainees, and on June 3 Vietnam informed us that we may interview all Montagnard ODP cases. The yearly renewal of the Jackson-Vanik waiver is likely to have influenced Vietnam to facilitate ODP processing.

Overall, Vietnam has a solid record of cooperation over the last 10-15 years in permitting Vietnamese to emigrate to the U.S. Over 480,000 have emigrated to the U.S. via the Orderly Departure Program (ODP) and there are only about 6,900 ODP applicants remaining to be processed. With the changes in procedures I mentioned above, we anticipate that we will be able to complete interviews by the end of 1998.

After a slow start initially, Vietnamese performance in implementing the ROVR agreement has improved dramatically since October. As of June 15, Vietnam has cleared for interview 15,322 or 82 percent of the 18,786 potential applicants. INS has interviewed 9,892 persons and 3,267 have departed for the U.S. under the program. Both sides are working to move people through the pipeline as quickly as possible. Vietnam has not yet provided clearance for 2,463 persons. However, it has provided an accounting for those cases, comprising 1,001 persons, that it has not cleared for interview. These are the remainder of about 3,000 persons for whom we requested an accounting in January, 1998. We expect that a significant number of these will be cleared for interview once we have provided additional information to Vietnam. As we near the end of the caseload, we can expect a slowdown as we begin to process the remaining cases; for example, those for whom it has been difficult to obtain accurate addresses. Nevertheless, we will continue to seek information on these cases and an accounting for any cases Vietnam cannot locate or finds ineligible.

We are working to normalize relations with Vietnam in a number of other areas. These include negotiation of a bilateral trade agreement, which with the Jackson-Vanik waiver is a prerequisite for granting MFN status to Vietnam. Last month, we concluded the fifth round of talks on an agreement. The atmosphere was positive and I think both sides are now better aware of the differences between our positions, although we still have considerable ground to cover to reach an agreement. We are committed to obtaining an agreement that creates a hospitable business environment for American firms in Vietnam.

Our preliminary discussions last March on a civil aviation agreement were disappointing. However, we are hopeful that the new leadership of Vietnam Airlines will reevaluate Vietnam's position and return to the table with greater flexibility.

The U.S. and Vietnam early on identified Science and Technology as promising areas for cooperation. We hope to negotiate a bilateral S&T agreement. However, cooperation has been developing even in the absence of an agreement. There have been a number of promising developments, including the return late last year of research data gathered by Dr. Arnold Schechter and Secretary Shalala's visit to Vietnam in December, 1997.

Cooperation in counternarcotics is mutually beneficial and we are negotiating a Memorandum of Understanding with Vietnam. Even in the absence of an MOU, we have begun or are planning projects in demand reduction, Vietnamese participation in DEA seminars and assistance to the police on evidentiary standards and methodology.

We have provided humanitarian assistance worth $3 million per year to Vietnam since 1995 for victims of war, including prosthetics and aid to orphaned children. As assessment team visited Vietnam earlier this year to evaluate prospects for a modest increase in our aid program. USAID is currently vetting the team's proposals, but prospects for a marked increase in aid to Vietnam are poor, given the overall budget constraints of USAID and intense competition for funds.

We believe that engagement with Vietnam has produced tangible results. Contact with the outside world has led to increased openness and relaxation of restrictions on personal liberty, in addition to improved access to information and foreign media. Since normalization, several jailed dissidents have been released. Over time, contacts via media, internet, trade and investment, travel and exchanges expose the Vietnamese to international standards and values.

Continuing to engage Vietnam, including pressure for greater openness and reform, is one of the keys to improving its respect for human rights, an area of continuing concern. Vietnam denies or curtails basic freedoms to its citizens, including freedom of speech, association and religion. There are a number of people in jail or under house arrest for the peaceful expression of their political or religious views. We discuss human rights directly with Vietnam at every opportunity and at the highest levels, including Secretary of State Albright and Treasury Secretary Rubin during their recent visits. On May 26, we held the sixth session of bilateral human rights dialogue. We raised both general issues as well as specific detention cases of concern to us.

As you can see from the above, we are engaging Vietnam across a broad spectrum of bilateral and transnational issues. Our goal is to develop a normal relationship with Vietnam that is like our relationships with the other member countries of ASEAN, putting the past behind us. The key to achieving this goal is for both sides to continue the close cooperation on POW/MIA accounting that has made possible the progress in normalization over the last few years. And progress in normalization strengthens our already excellent cooperation in POW/MIA accounting.

LAOS

Turning to Laos, the U.S. has four primary interests: Again, ensuring the most complete POW/MIA accounting possible is our first priority. Our other primary interests are counternarcotics efforts in the Golden Triangle; facilitating progress on human rights; and securing the transition of the Lao economy from a command economy to an open, market-oriented system.

Since 1993, we have accounted for 119 Americans missing in Laos. Another 447 remain unaccounted for. Joint Field Activity (JFA) 98-4l is currently ongoing in southern Laos, with 40 U.S. personnel conducting excavations and investigations. Lao cooperation in field exercises is excellent. Cooperation in other areas, such as archival research and the Oral History Program, still could stand improvement. We appear to be nearing a milestone in cooperation on archival research; the long-awaited transfer of war-era films from archives in Hanoi to Vientiane should begin this summer.

Vietnamese authorities recently visited the Lao National Film/Video Archive Storage Facility in Vientiane to evaluate its adequacy for holding films with possible POW/MIA footage now stored in Hanoi, a condition they had set for permitting return of the films to Laos. The Vietnamese approved the upgraded facility. Lao officials will travel to Hanoi later this month to prepare war-era films for shipment back to Vientiane.

With the transfer of the films, gaining Lao cooperation in the Oral History Program will become the focus of our diplomatic efforts. The Lao, thus far, have resisted the idea of U.S. military personnel conducting interviews of former senior Lao military and civilian officials, but have indicated a willingness to have these officials fill out questionnaires. We will continue to pursue this issue as a priority.

CAMBODIA

In Cambodia, superb POW/MIA cooperation continued throughout the past year. Cambodia is usually credited with providing us with the best assistance of any country on this issue and Cambodia's cooperation was not affected by the turmoil in July, 1997 or our subsequent suspension of aid.

In February, 1998, the Cambodia detachment of Joint Task Force-Full Accounting (JTF-FA) conducted its final joint field operation in remote areas, during which several sets of remains were recovered and formally turned over to the USG by the head of the Cambodian POW/MIA Committee in March ceremony at Pochentong Airport. Following this field operation, the Cambodia JTF-FA Detachment was shut down, as all active field investigations had been completed. Other efforts, particularly documentary research and oral history review projects, continue in order to identify other leads on which future field activities could be based.

KOREA

A full accounting of all of the more than 8,100 servicemen missing from the Korean War is a top priority of this Administration. We believe that the remains of most of these men are still in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). We continue to stress to the DPRK at every opportunity that the U.S. places the highest priority on their location and return home. As a result of our strenuous efforts, progress in this area has been among the greatest in the range of issues on which we and the North Koreans cooperate.

Let me give you some details about the recent history of our efforts. While North Korea returned several thousand remains immediately following the Korean War, it did not cooperate with us again in this area until the early 1990s. At that time, it returned a total of 208 remains through the United Nations Command (UNC) in Panmunjom. These remains have been difficult to identify because of poor DPRK recovery techniques. The problem underscored the need for joint recovery operations (JROs), in which U.S. Army forensic specialists could work together with DPRK military personnel to recover and return remains of U.S. servicemen to the United States.

The Defense POW/MIA Office (DPMO) did a superb job in negotiating with the North Koreans to reach agreement to hold these JROs and establish the rules under which they would operate. The first JRO took place in July 1996, and resulted in the return of the remains of one U.S. soldier. In 1997, three JROs took place, which resulted in the return of six remains; in addition, U.S. military officials were given access to North Korean military archives for the first time. Five JROs and one joint archival review have been scheduled for 1998. The first of these, in May, resulted in the recovery of two remains. U.S. compensation to North Korea for the JROs is based on agreed-upon formulas that are consistent with our practice worldwide.

In May, at the end of the first JRO this year, the North Koreans delayed return of two sets of remains via the UN Joint Security Area (JSA) at Panmunjom, refusing to transfer them to the UNC under the UN flag, as had been our agreed practice for all previous JROs. This uncertainty made it necessary for us to postpone the second 1998 JRO, which had been scheduled to begin May 26, but the DPRK has given us assurances that the matter is now resolved.

One of the reasons for our relative success in this area is that we have generally persuaded the North Koreans to treat it as a partly humanitarian issue. However, the North Koreans indicated to us recently that they saw a linkage between agreement on General Officer talks and the repatriation procedures. We continue to emphasize to the DPRK that the MIA remains issue must be kept separate from all others on humanitarian grounds, and that both sides must honor the agreements specifying the terms of each year's joint operations. However, the DPRK and the U.S. agreed on June 8 to commence General Officer talks at Panmunjom. These will be the first formal talks at the General level since 1991.

We are also committed to pursuing all information about the fate of Americans possibly being held against their will in North Korea, although to date there has been no substantiation of such reports. In high-level discussions with North Korean Foreign Ministry and Defense officials, we have raised this issue at every opportunity. The DPRK government has responded that, apart from the four Americans who deserted from U.S. military service in the postwar period, there are no American military personnel living in North Korea. We will continue to insist on access to these four men to determine if they have any knowledge of American POWs alive in the DPRK.

CHINA

We also are working with China on POW/MIA accounting. We have received good cooperation from the Chinese government on World War II and Vietnam War cases and are continuing to press senior Chinese officials to take steps to advance cooperation on Korean War POW/MIA cases. We hope that our strategy of engagement and our effective cooperation with Chinese in other important areas will help produce positive results on this issue.

Our proposal for cooperation includes various initiatives to strengthen our efforts on Korean War cases. We also are seeking a copy of the film "Jiaoliang" (Test of Strength), the documentary clips from the film, and any records relating to documentary, which reportedly contains footage of U.S. Korean War POWs.

CONCLUSION

Obtaining the fullest possible accounting for our missing is the American government's highest priority. We can do no less for the families. We have expended much effort on this task and we will continue to do so until we have done absolutely everything possible to achieve our goal.

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