News-Info-Alerts

To: ALL

From: Andi Wolos & Bob Necci

(POW-MIA InterNetwork)

Re: NLF Update

Date: January 19, 2002

"Update Line
AMERICAN ACCOUNTED FOR: According to the Department of Defense, there are now 1,947 Americans missing and unaccounted for from the Vietnam War. Of that total, 1,468 are in Vietnam, 411 in Laos, 60 in Cambodia and 8 in the territorial waters of the PRC. Over 90% of all Vietnam War missing were lost in Vietnam or areas under its wartime control. Although no public announcement has yet been made, it is understood that the Air Force Officer's loss incident occurred in North Vietnam and had been the subject of several joint field recoveries prior to identification. It is hoped that a public announcement will soon be made.

US TEAM IN LAOS FOR TRAINING MISSION: US personnel from DIA's Stony Beach Team and JTF-FA are in Laos to work with Lao personnel in developing a successful unilateral Lao Oral History Program. This effort, long a League priority, offers promise in developing leads from sources not yet known to US interviewers. Joint field operations will resume February 7th and continue until March 12th.

JOINT OPERATIONS RESUME IN VIETNAM: A team of 95 US personnel from the Joint Task Force-Full Accounting, Central Identification Laboratory and DIA's Stony Beach POW/MIA team has begun the 68th Joint Field Activity in Vietnam. This operation consists of six recovery teams and one investigation team, operating for a period of approximately 30 days in 8 provinces of Central Vietnam. The joint teams plan to investigate as many as 29 incidents and conduct recoveries on 6 cases.

CAMBODIA & US TO CONDUCT FIELD OPERATIONS: US and Cambodian officials will meet in Phnom Penh on January 28th for a coordination meeting to prepare for full-scale joint operations in mid-February. Several cases are to be investigated and others are scheduled for excavation. Cambodian officials are currently involved in a unilateral plan of investigations that was proposed by the Cambodian government and is being supported by the United States. The League welcomes this initiative to assist in accounting for our missing men.

CILHI PURSUING WWII ACCOUNTING: CILHI also has deployed two teams to the Marshall Islands and Papua New Guinea to recover remains of Americans lost during World War II. CILHI's ability to expand its recovery mission is the direct result of increased personnel and resources that the League fought to obtain. CILHI's role is now global, and that is to be applauded; however, at no time should the priority on accounting for those missing from the Vietnam and Korean Wars be decreased. There are open questions as to whether Americans are still held prisoner from the Vietnam War, as there are regarding the Korean War missing.

US OFFICIALS MEETING WITH NORTH KOREANS: Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defemse for POW/MIA Affairs Jerry Jennings will soon conclude discussions with North Korean officials. The sessions were held in an effort to reach agreement on a schedule for joint field operations for the year. The League is confident that Mr. Jennings is quite capable of holding his own with these tough negotiators, expecting that the results will better serve the Korean War POW/MIA families and US Government interests as well.

LEAGUE ANNUAL MEETING SCHEDULED: The League's 33rd Annual Meeting will be held June 19-22nd, 2002, at the Crystal City DoubleTree Hotel in Arlington, VA. Registration and reservation forms will be distributed to all League members by mail and available by request to the League office.

THE LEAGUE HAS MOVED: The new League office location is 1005 North Glebe Road, Suite 170, Arlington, VA 22201. It is not yet completed, but is open on a limited basis, hoping to be fully functional by the end of January.

NOTES: Ms. Molly Mcdonald, a senior at the University of California, has joined the League for a three-month internship to learn about the issue and assist in the League office. Should you call the office, please welcome Ms. McDonald.

POW/MIA car window decals are available at a cost of $20 per 100 by sending a check to the League.

POW/MIA lapel pins are also available at $3 each or 2/$5, also by sending a check to the League office.

For added information on any subject, please contact the League's web site at www.pow-miafamilies.org or call the national office at 703-465-7432. If no one is available to take your call, please leave a message and your call will be returned.

The National League of Families of American Prisoners and Missing in Southeast Asia
1005 North Glebe Road
Suite 170
Arlington, Virginia 22201
(TEL) 703-465-7432
Federal Tax ID #23-7071242"