Deadlock Plus Guns
The interruption of the Kaesong talks by the Communists owing to an alleged violation of the demilitarised area by a United Nations' aircraft is the most serious break so far. It derives its seriousness from the fact that the Communist allega- tion appears to have no truth in it, and must therefore have been concocted fer the express purpose of bringing the talks to an end. What is more, it reinforces the movement back towards all-out war which has been noticeable in the last week as the fighting has flared up and the armistice talks have ground towards a stop. The nature of the factors Which produced a deadlock in the sub-committee that was discussing the location of the proposed demilitarised zone between the opposed forces in Korea was no doubt plain enough on the large-scale maps lying before its members. " Military logic "—that precise-sounding phrase which, according to the United Nations command, must determine the final position of the zone, has not, since the eighteenth century, been sufficient to convince any two non- Chinese commanders, after the mere inspection of marked maps, that one has won and the other has lost. War is no longer a game of chess, and the only logic that convinces is the logic of guns. It is once more being tried, though still on a limited scale. And it has had some results, if only to show the United Nations forces, who have, made probing attacks between Yanggu and the east coast of the peninsula and between Chorwon and Kumhwa in the centre of the line, that the Communist forces are as determined to hold on to their prepared defences as are the United Nations. So far the revival of the fighting has been mainly significant for 'its effect on the attitudes adopted at Kaesong. But if it goes on increasing in scale, it cannot be long before it assumes importance in its own right and opens up a new phase of the war. The disappointment at such an outcome , Would be all the more bitter in that neither side seems to expect any war confined to Korea to produce a decisive result. But the new venom the Communists have put into their broadcast propa- ganda, and their determination to disclaim their own exclusive responsibility for maintaining order within the truce area around Kaesong bode no good.
