Search Effort For Korean War Dead Continues

조선일보(영문판) - South Korea

The Korean War broke out almost six decades ago. As part of the effort to search for the remains of its missing soldiers, the Defense Ministry is due to release a map that shows the potential sites where they might be.

The Institute for Military History Compilation has been gathering data based on accounts from the soldiers' families and other war veterans. The map is expected to be distributed within the military as a basis for the search mission.

The search and recovery of the remains started eight years ago, and so far out of more than 1,700 remnants found 53 have been positively identified.

For the U.S. government, the recent effort by the Defense Ministry could help in its search for American soldiers who never made it home.

The U.S. received support from North Korea from 1990 to 2005 in finding missing soldiers buried in the communist country. The mission found 443 remains. The North Koreans were paid some US$22 million for their excavation efforts.

The U.S. has a policy enacted after the Vietnam War of searching for the bodies of service members missing in action. Right now soldiers classified as such are only removed from the list once their remains are found and identified.

A similar move is taking place in the Korean military, and experts say the effort should continue in collaboration with North Korea.

Arirang News