Yoon vows to respond firmly to N. Korea’s threats through S. Korea-US alliance

Oct 13, 2023, 10:06 am

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President Yoon Suk-yeol attends a ceremony at the War Memorial of Korea in Seoul on Oct. 12, 2023, to mark the 73rd anniversary of the Battle of Lake Changjin. / Source: Yonhap News

AsiaToday reporter Hong Sun-mi

President Yoon Suk-yeol vowed Thursday to sternly respond to North Korea’s provocation and nuclear missile threats based on a firm South Korea-US alliance.

Yoon attended a ceremony commemorating the Battle of Lake Changjin, also known as the Battle of Chosin Reservoir at the War Memorial of Korea in Seoul. “The South Korea-US alliance, which was formed in blood during the Korean War, has developed into the most successful alliance in the world over the last 70 years, and the South Korea-US alliance today is stronger than ever,” Yoon said during remarks at the ceremony.

“While strengthening security cooperation among South Korea, the US and Japan, we will contribute to freedom, peace and prosperity in the world in close cooperation with allies,” he said.

Yoon was the first sitting president to attend the annual commemoration ceremony for the Battle of Lake Changjin. Yoon attended the event as this year also marks 70 years since the establishment of the South Korea-US alliance.

“Through the Battle of Lake Changjin, we suppressed the Chinese army’s southward movement and successfully carried out the so-called Hungnam evacuation,” Yoon said. “As a result, nearly 100,000 civilians in Hungnam were able to come to free Korea.”

Yoon promised that the South Korean people and government will never forget the noble sacrifices of the heroes killed in the battle.

Yoon showed respect to the heroes by holding hands with Kim Eung Seon Ong, who participated in the Hungnam evacuation operation, and Kenlim Hinsho Moi, who served in the US military intelligence battalion from 1953 to 1955, to attend the event.

At the ceremony, Air Force Sergeant Kim Ha-rang, the great-grandson of the late Private Kim Dong-sung, who died in the Battle of Lake Changjin, delivered pledge of alliance to the flag, and US Ambassador to Korea Philip Goldberg gave a speech on behalf of the US government.

Before attending the ceremony, Yoon paid tribute to the late Sergeant Gerald Bernard Raeymacker of the US Marine 1ST Division, who was killed in the Battle of Lake Changjin, at the War Memorial of Korea.

More than 2,800 people attended the ceremony, including Defense Minister Shin Won-sik, Patriots and Veterans Affairs Minister Park Min-shik.

#Yoon Suk-yeol #Battle of Lake Changjin #South Korea-US alliance