South Korea's Ministry of National Defense will hold the 13th handover ceremony for the remains of Chinese soldiers killed in the 1950-1953 Korean War at Incheon International Airport on Saturday, the ministry said Friday.
Under international law and humanitarian principles, the ministry has repatriated a total of 1,011 sets of Chinese soldiers' remains from 2014 through last year. This year, 12 sets will be returned.
The handover ceremony has been regarded as a symbol of South Korea-China exchange, having been held without interruption even in 2016, when bilateral tensions escalated over the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system, and throughout the COVID-19 pandemic years from 2020 to 2022.
The remains repatriation project has been pursued with the aim of healing the scars of the Korean War and realizing humanitarian values. It has also been credited with playing a certain role in building military trust and managing relations between South Korea and China.
This year's ceremony will resume as a vice-ministerial-level public event for the first time in three years, reflecting the spirit of restoring South Korea-China relations and good-neighborly friendship. Vice Defense Minister Lee Doo-hee is scheduled to attend.
The event will be held at Incheon International Airport with delegations from both countries in attendance, following official protocol. Handover ceremonies typically include an honor guard tribute, floral tributes, and a moment of silence, after which the Chinese delegation will escort the remains back to their home country.
The government plans to maintain its principle of humanitarian treatment of war dead remains going forward.
