UN Korean War veterans to gather in Busan this week

An annual ceremony will be held at the United Nations park in the southern port city of Busan this week to commemorate the fallen heroes of the Korean conflict, the war veterans ministry said Monday.

Nearly 2 million soldiers from 21 countries were dispatched to fight alongside South Korean soldiers in the 1950-53 war under the UN flag against the invading North Korean forces. More than 150,000 of them were killed, wounded, went missing or became prisoners of the war.

To remember the fallen heroes, about 100 foreign Korean War veterans and their families from 13 countries will visit the country to attend the event from Wednesday through Sunday, according to the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs.

The "Turn Toward Busan" commemoration has been held annually on Nov. 11 in honor of the war dead since 2008.

In major events, the veterans are scheduled to visit the UN Memorial Cemetery in Busan, the burial place for United Nations Command soldiers, on Friday to take part in commemoration event, the ministry said in a statement.

The guests at the event include Vincent Courtenay, 82, who fought the war and first suggested the idea of the Turn Toward Busan commemoration in 2007, and Canadian Senator Yonah Martin who helped establish July 27 as the Korean War veterans' day in his country, it said.

Some 30,000 UN Korean War veterans have been to South Korea since 1975 as part of the government's programs to express special thanks to those who fought for freedom and defended the country from invasion. (Yonhap)