Congressional Record: April 18, 2002 (Senate)
Page S2976-S2977

 
                  STATEMENTS ON SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

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 SENATE RESOLUTION 246--DEMANDING THE RETURN OF THE USS "PUEBLO" TO 
                         THE UNITED STATES NAVY

  Mr. CAMPBELL submitted the following resolution; which was referred 
to the Committee on Foreign Relations.

                              S. Res. 246

       Whereas the USS Pueblo, which was attacked and captured by 
     the North Korean Navy on January 23, 1968, was the first 
     United States Navy ship to be hijacked on the high seas by a 
     foreign military force in over 150 years;
       Whereas 1 member of the USS Pueblo crew, Duane Hodges, was 
     killed in the assault while the other 82 crew members were 
     held in captivity, often under inhumane conditions, for 11 
     months;
       Whereas the USS Pueblo, an intelligence collection 
     auxiliary vessel, was operating in international waters at 
     the time of the capture, and therefore did not violate North 
     Korean territorial waters;
       Whereas the capture of the USS Pueblo resulted in no 
     reprisals against the Government or people of North Korea and 
     no military action at any time; and
       Whereas the USS Pueblo, though still the property of the 
     United States Navy, has been retained by North Korea for more 
     than 30 years, was subjected to exhibition in the North 
     Korean cities of Wonsan and Hungham, and is now on display in 
     Pyongyang, the capital city of North Korea: Now, therefore, 
     be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) demands the return of the USS Pueblo to the United 
     States Navy; and
       (2) directs the Secretary of the Senate to transmit copies 
     of this resolution to the President, the Secretary of 
     Defense, and the Secretary of State.

  Mr. CAMPBELL. Madam President, I am pleased to introduce this 
resolution which recognizes and demands that the government of North 
Korea return the ship the USS Pueblo to the United States Navy.
  On January 23, 1968, while in international waters, the USS Pueblo 
was attacked and illegally captured by the North Korean Navy. This 
engagement marked the first time in over 150 years a United States Navy 
ship was hijacked on the high seas by a foreign military force. This 
naked act of aggression resulted in 82 crew members being held in 
captivity as Prisoners of War for eleven months in inhumane conditions 
with one casualty, Duane Hodges who was killed during the initial 
assault. On December 23, 1968, the USS Pueblo crew was finally 
released. At the time of its capture, the USS Pueblo was operating as 
an intelligence collection auxiliary vessel, and did not pose a threat.
  According to the Navy Department Office of the Chief of Naval 
Operations Ships' Histories Section, the name USS Pueblo has enjoyed a 
long and proud history prior to January 23, 1968. Currently, the 
environmental research vessel USS Pueblo, AGER-2, is the third ship of 
the fleet to bear the name of the City and County of Pueblo, CO. 
Originally the armored cruiser Colorado was renamed the Pueblo in 1916 
when a new battleship named Colorado was authorized. That ship served 
from 1905 to 1927. The second vessel named the Pueblo, PF-13, was a 
city class frigate which proudly served from 1944 to 1946. She was 
later sold to the Dominican Republic where she serves today. The third 
and current PUEBLO, AGER-2, was built by the Kewaunee Shipbuilding and 
Engineering Corporation, Kewaunee, WI. A general purpose supply vessel 
designed especially for service in the U.S. Army Transportation Corps, 
she was launched 16 April 1944 and later redesignated as an 
environmental research vessel.
  To date, the capture of the USS Pueblo has resulted in no reprisal 
against the government or people of North

[[Page S2977]]

Korea and although the USS Pueblo still remains property of the United 
States Navy, the North Korean Government displays it as a traveling 
museum in the North Korean cities of Wonsan and Hungham, and is now on 
display in Pyongyang, the Capital city of North Korea. This is 
unacceptable to me and a number of my colleagues. At issue here, isn't 
the value of the ship. At issue is the honor of America and the record 
of those who proudly served and were illegal captives by North Korea, a 
nation which seeks the destruction of America.
  I stand with my fellow legislators back home in the Sixty-third 
Colorado State General Assembly in demanding the return of the USS 
Pueblo to the United States Navy.
  I urge my colleagues here in the U.S. Senate to join me in supporting 
passage of this important resolution.

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