The moment the Korean peninsula was on the brink of war 23 years ago

The first time the Korean peninsula faced the risk of war because of a nuclear crisis was in 1994.

Satellite image of North Korea's Yongbyon nuclear complex in 1994. Photo:pri.org

Tensions over Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions threatened to escalate into conflict in 1994 when the US administration at the time, under US President Bill Clinton, seriously considered unilaterally attacking the reactor at North Korea's Yongbyon nuclear complex to prevent the country from recovering raw materials to make nuclear bombs, according to CNN.

In June 1994, North Korea prepared to remove some fuel rods from the nuclear reactor at the Yongbyon complex to extract plutonium. The fuel rods contained enough plutonium to produce 5-6 nuclear bombs.

"This would help North Korea achieve its nuclear ambitions, and that is unacceptable," Ashton Carter, then the US assistant secretary of defense, told PBS. "We don't believe we can negotiate North Korea to stop, so we are considering the possibility of using force to force them to withdraw their nuclear program."

The US military had drawn up plans to attack the nuclear reactor at the Yongbyon complex, but they were also warned that such an attack would spark an all-out war that could kill up to a million people, according to several former Pentagon officials.

The US is also considering seeking stronger sanctions against North Korea at the United Nations Security Council, but this option still carries the risk of causing the situation to spiral out of control.

The decisive meeting at the White House

US President Bill Clinton (center) chairs a meeting in the Situation Room at the White House in March 1994. Photo: CIA

After months of rising tensions, on June 15, 1994, at a meeting at the White House, Pentagon officials, including Secretary of Defense William Perry and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General John Shalikashvili, presented President Clinton with three options for bolstering the 37,000 U.S. troops stationed in South Korea. Perry told Clinton that all three proposals were risky, but that it would be disastrous to not choose one of them.

The Pentagon supports a moderate option: Sending 10,000 more US troops, F-117 stealth bombers, cruise missiles, long-range bombers and an additional aircraft carrier strike group to South Korea or the surrounding area, while calling for the evacuation of all US citizens living and working in South Korea.

Pentagon officials said the decision to deploy cruise missiles and F-117 stealth bombers was aimed at attacking a nuclear reactor at Yongbyon.

"In just one day, we will deploy major reinforcements for American troops in Korea. In addition, we are also preparing to evacuate American citizens from Korea," Mr. Perry said in an interview with CNN in 1999.

In a later interview with PBS, Mr. Perry said the Pentagon had carefully considered contingency plans and concluded that in the event of a North Korean attack on South Korea, the United States would definitely defeat its opponent.

"But the number of casualties depends very much on our preparation. In other words, we can reduce the number of casualties significantly if we increase the reinforcements appropriately. So, I presented to President Clinton the plan to increase the number of American troops in Korea," Mr. Perry said.

The Pentagon's biggest concern is that North Korea will launch a preemptive strike against South Korea because Pyongyang still views Washington's troop buildup or evacuation of civilians as a warning sign of an imminent attack.

In a 1999 interview with CNN, Robert Gallucci, former chief US negotiator on the North Korean nuclear issue in 1994, revealed that he himself believed "war was close." He was almost certain that an attack on Yongbyon would ignite the flames of war on the Korean peninsula.

"We have made it clear that we are ready to choose a military solution if necessary, but that is certainly not the preferred option," Mr. Gallucci said.

The detonator was removed at the last minute.

North Korean President Kim Il Sung (right) welcomes former US President Jimmy Carter in 1994. Photo: kancc.org

However, while Mr. Clinton was listening to officials report on the options, former US President Jimmy Carter called from Pyongyang, announcing that he had made great progress after meeting with North Korean leader Kim Il Sung.

"I remember that before the president chose the option, the conference room door suddenly opened and we were informed that there was a call from former President Carter from Pyongyang. He wanted to talk to me," Gallucci said.

Jimmy Carter had previously traveled to Pyongyang as a U.S. citizen and met with North Korean leader Kim Il Sung in hopes of resolving the nuclear crisis on the peninsula. From Pyongyang, he called to report that a breakthrough agreement had been reached on the North Korean nuclear issue.

Immediately, the meeting at the White House stopped midway to follow the latest developments that Mr. Carter reported on the phone. "I consider the commitment that Mr. Kim Il Sung made to be very important," said former US President Carter.

"We were reporting to Mr. Clinton and presenting three options when former President Carter called and said that he had spoken to Mr. Kim Il Sung and that Mr. Kim Il Sung said he was willing to stop the nuclear program at Yongbyon if the United States would provide North Korea with a light-water reactor to replace the nuclear reactor in use at that time," Mr. Perry recounted the unexpected situation in the White House meeting room to PBS.

A few days later, North Korea agreed to freeze its nuclear program in exchange for new nuclear reactors that could not produce weapons-grade plutonium and oil to meet its domestic energy needs. The United States also made another concession by agreeing to direct negotiations with North Korea. The U.S. plan 5027, which had several options for thwarting a surprise attack from North Korea on South Korean territory, was shelved.

Perry, who ordered the planning of the preemptive strike, ultimately rejected the option. Confident that the US military could wipe out the Yongbyon nuclear complex without risking a radioactive leak, Perry also believed that such an attack would spark all-out war on the Korean peninsula.

He suggested that US President Clinton seek stronger sanctions from the United Nations, a less provocative but still risky option.

"The chief nuclear negotiator on the North Korean side told me that a UN sanctions resolution and moves to implement sanctions could be seen as an act of war," Gallucci said.

According to VNE