Not surprisingly, the North Koreans couldn’t let the day pass without comment.
North Korea demanded the United States end its “hostile policy” toward the communist state Wednesday as Pyongyang marked the 40th anniversary of its seizure of a U.S. spy ship.
An unnamed spokesman for the “Korean National Peace Committee,” one of Pyongyang’s propaganda organizations, called the incident “a product of the U.S. gangster-like policy of aggression against the DPRK in every aspect” in a statement issued on the eve of the anniversary.
If you don’t know, the Pueblo is a floating museum today in Pyongyang. It was seized off North Korea’s east coast 40 years ago, but in 1999 it was sailed through international waters to the DPRK’s west coast where it remains today. The USS Pueblo is US property, but no one made a protest at the time and just watched as the ship was moved.
The North Koreans have made several hints about returning the ship, but always as part of some bigger deal with the US. So far administrations have said thanks but no thanks. It should remain that way so far as I’m concerned.
A bit hat tip to GI at ROK Drop. GI wrote a lengthy post on the Pueblo incident here and I suggest you read it. GI(An officer presently serving in the US Army) is one of my favorite bloggers. His blog(ROK stands for Republic of Korea aka South Korea) follows mostly South Korea news and issues is well worth reading.
