Yoon: ROK-US alliance upgraded to nuclear-based

Jun 07, 2023, 07:24 am

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President Yoon Suk-yeol delivers a speech during a ceremony commemorating Memorial Day at Seoul National Cemetery in Dongjak District, Seoul, on June 6, 2023./ Source: Yonhap

AsiaToday reporter Lee Wook-jae

President Yoon Suk-yeol said Tuesday that the alliance between South Korea and the United States has now been upgraded to a nuclear-based one.

Yoon made the remarks in a speech at a ceremony commemorating the 68th Memorial Day at Seoul National Cemetery in Seoul. “In April, I and U.S. President Joe Biden jointly announced the Washington Declaration, which significantly enhances the extended deterrence of U.S. nuclear assets,” Yoon said.

“North Korea is upgrading its nuclear and missile capabilities and has enacted its right to use nuclear weapons,” Yoon said. “The government and the military will establish an ironclad security posture based on the strongest-ever South Korea-U.S. alliance to protect the people’s lives and safety.”

Ahead of the Memorial Day ceremony, Yoon attended the burial ceremony of the remains of Private First Class Kim Bong-hak, who died during the Battle of Bloody Ridge and his remains were buried alongside those of his younger brother that also died during the Korean War. “The government will continue to make efforts to bring back the remains of the fallen heroes to their families,” the president said. “We will also continue to work to bring the remains of the patriotic martyrs who died overseas while fighting for our independence.”

“The Republic of Korea stands on the sacrifice and dedication of those who defended their freedom against communist totalitarian forces and devoted themselves to independence and founding of a country where the people are the owners and a free democratic country,” he said. “It is the responsibility of a country to remember and honor the heroes in uniform including soldiers, police officers and firefighters, who sacrificed themselves to protect the country and the people.”

“It is the order of the liberal democratic constitution to properly remember and honor those who built and defended a liberal democracy and sacrificed for the safety of the people who are the owners of the country,” Yoon said. “As president, I have a constitutional responsibility to protect the independence of the state, the preservation of the territory, and the continuity of the state. I will do my best to fulfill my constitutional responsibilities.”

After the ceremony, Yoon visited the graves of those killed in the Vietnam War and in anti-espionage operations. The burial site was created in June 1981. This is the first time in 42 years that a Korean president has visited the burial site.

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