South Korean navy Senior Chief Petty Officer Choi Hojong carries the remains of his uncle, South Korean army Pfc. Choi Im-rak, at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, July 25, 2023. (South Korean Ministry of National Defense)
SEOUL, South Korea — The remains of seven South Korean soldiers from the Korean War were returned by the United States during a dignified transfer ceremony at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii on Tuesday.
South Korean Vice Minister of National Defense Shin Beomchul, who jointly presided over the ceremony with Adm. John Aquilino, head of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, said the repatriation of the seven “great heroes” was a testament to the enduring alliance between Washington and Seoul, according to a news release from the ministry.
“South Korea remembers its great heroes — who protected its freedom in the name of the state — forever and will take charge of them to the end,” Shin said. “South Korea will do its best to conduct projects to recover the remains of soldiers killed in the Korean War until the very last man.”
The remains of seven South Korean soldiers are flown to Seoul from Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, July 25, 2023. (South Korean Ministry of National Defense)
The remains were found to be of South Korean origin during a joint forensic investigation in the United States by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency and its South Korean counterpart, the Ministry of National Defense Agency for Killed in Action Recovery and Identification.
Only one of the seven — Pfc. Choi Im-rak — has been identified, so far. Choi’s nephew, South Korean navy Senior Chief Petty Officer Choi Hojong, attended the ceremony to receive his uncle’s remains.
Following the ceremony, a South Korean army honor guard carried the remains into a South Korean air force KC-330 Cygnus, which was scheduled to fly over Choi’s hometown of Ulsan before landing at Seoul Airbase in Seongnam city late Wednesday.
Upon entering South Korean airspace, four of the country’s F-35A Lightning II stealth fighters were to escort the KC-330 to Seoul, according to the ministry.
South Korean soldiers prepare to carry the remains of Korean War dead during a ceremony at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, July 25, 2023. (South Korean Ministry of National Defense)
Choi will be buried at Seoul National Cemetery while the six other remains will undergo further analysis by the agency for recovery and identification, the ministry said.
Since 2012, South Korea has received the remains of 313 Korean War troops from the U.S. Of those, only 19 have been identified.
The remains of 450 Americans killed in the war have been returned to the U.S. from South Korea since 1982, according to DPAA’s website. Roughly 7,600 others are still unaccounted for.
Of the 1.8 million U.S. troops who deployed to the Korean Peninsula during the 1950-53 Korean War, roughly 23,600 died in combat, according to the Defense Casualty Analysis System.
