[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 120 (Thursday, September 11, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1739]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          TRIBUTE TO THE 50TH BATTALION DURING THE KOREAN WAR

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. FRANK PALLONE, JR.

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 11, 1997

  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I would like to draw my colleagues' 
attention to a very important event that is taking place on September 
16, 17, and 18 in Atlantic City, NJ.
  On that day, about 80 members of the 50th Battalion--veterans of the 
Korean war--will reunite to commemorate the tremendous contribution of 
the 50th Battalion from 1950 to 1955 and honor the soldiers who were 
injured and who died in many critical offensives of the Korean war.
  I am pleased to call as a friend the coordinator of the event, Peter 
A. Marone, and wish him great success for this reunion of Korean war 
heroes. These wishes also go out to the cocoordinator, Donald Sullivan 
of Absecon, NJ.
  Mr. Marone, former mayor of St. Pleasant, NJ, has reminded me of the 
tremendous contribution made by the 50th Battalion and I want to share 
a brief account with you.
  The goal of the initial invasion by our troops at Inchon in 
September, 1950, was to seize the vital rail and communications center 
of Seoul, seal off the main areas of escape to the north, and secure 
the port at Inchon and the airfields at Kimpo and Seoul.
  This incredible series of battles and troop movements was followed 
shortly by what was called ``The Christmas Miracle.'' By November 1950 
the Korean war seemed all but over. The North Koreans were squeezed 
back to the Yalu River on the Manchurian border. It seemed the war was 
coming to an end.
  But on November 27, Communist China sent 120,000 troops into North 
Korea and pitted them against 15,000 U.N. forces in the East. There 
were many casualties among Marines and Army troops. In the following 
days, of the 15,000 U.N. troops encircled by the Communist Chinese, 
12,000 became casualties.
  It was then that the chosen fighters of the 50th Battalion made their 
greatest contribution. By checking the Chinese forces in the mountains 
as part of a perimeter established around the besieged Hamhung, they 
enabled the escape of 100,000 North Korean men, women, and children to 
safety.
  I would like to recognize the courage of the participants in the 
Christmas Miracle, as well as all those who nobly served in the 
battalion in the following years. It is so important that current and 
future generations never forget the sacrifices and the bravery of the 
soldiers of the 50th Battalion as well as all the veterans of our wars.

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