Press Release, Statement by President Harry S. Truman

IMEDIATE RELEASE NOVEMBER 30, 1950 STATEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT Recent developments in Korea confront the world with a serious crisis. The Chinese communist leaders have sent their troops from Manchuria to launch a strong and well-organized attack against the United Nations forces in North Korea. This has been done despite prolonged and earnest efforts to bring home to the communist leaders of China the plain fact that neither the United Nations nor the United States has any aggressive intentions toward China. Because of the historic friendship between the people of the United States and China, it is particularly shocking to us to think that Chinese are being forced into battle against our troops in the United Nations command. The Chinese attack was made in great force, and it still continues. It has resulted in the forced withdrawal of large parts of the United Nations command. The battlefield situation is un- certain at this time. We may suffer reverses as we have suffered them before. But the forces of the United Nations have no intention of abandoning their mission in Korea. The forces of the United Nations are in Korea to put down an aggression that threatens not only the whole fabrice of the United Nations, but all human hopes of peace and justice. If the United Nations yields to the forces of aggression, no nation vill be safe or secure. If aggression is successful in Korea, we can expect it to spread through Asia and Europe to this hemisphere. We are fighting in Korea for our own national security and survival. We have committed ourselves to the cause of a just and peaceful world order through the United Nations. We stand by that commitment. We shall meet the new si tuation in three ways. Ve shall continue to work in the United Nations for concerted action to halt this aggression in Korea. We shall intensify our efforts to help other free nations strengthen their defenses in order to meut the threat of aggression olsewhere. Tie shall rapidly increase our own military strength. In the United Nations, the first step is action by the Security Council to halt this aggression. Ambassador Warren Austin is pressing for such action. We shall exert every efrort to help bring the full influence of the United Nations to bear on the situation in Korea. Some had hoped that the normal peaceful process of dis- cussion and nogotiation, which is provided through the United OVER