The Unrecovered War Casualties-Army (UWC-A) section in Army HQ was established to identify and recover the remains of Australian servicemen Missing in Action (MIA). It is the lead agency in the investigation and recovery activites.

A Working Group has been setup to identify and recover the Korean War MIAs. The Working Group consists of UWC-A principals, forensics specialists, RAAF Heritage and History Branch members, relatives of the MIAs and representatives of the RAR Association and the Air Force Association. The functions of the UWC-A are to:

• Liaise with American and South Korean authorities to determine whether any remains they currently hold are those of Australian servicemen.
• Use diplomatic and defence networks to encourage other nations to assist in getting North Korea to cooperate with the international community regarding recovery of remains from their country. For example China, which has good relations with both North Korea and Australia, may be able to facilitate improved cooperation.

UWC-A works with the United States’ Defense Prisoner of War/Missing in Action Accounting Agency(DPAA) and the South Korean Ministry of National Defence Agency for Missing in Action Recovery and Identification (MAKRI). All organisations have a strong interest in accounting for their servicemen who remain unaccounted for in Korea.

You can view the activities of the UWC-A at:  www.army.gov.au/our-work/unrecovered-war-casualties/the-korean-war-project