Chinese expert hails agreement with S. Korea on war remains

A Chinese expert on Saturday praised an agreement with South Korea to repatriate the remains of hundreds of Chinese soldiers killed during the 1950-53 Korean War, saying it would help maintain peace and stability in the region.

South Korea has begun excavating the remains of 425 Chinese soldiers buried at a cemetery in Paju, a border city with North Korea, to return them to China. The Thursday agreement came after South Korean President Park Geun-hye proposed it during her visit to China in June.

Shen Zhihua, an expert of the Korean Peninsula history at East China Normal University, told the state-run China Daily, "Both China and the ROK (South Korea) are showing a humanitarian spirit in this case."

"It indicates that the two 'former enemies' value peace and stability in the Korean Peninsula and East Asia nowadays," Shen said.

China's foreign ministry has also welcomed the agreement, saying it will "actively push for" the repatriation efforts.

The Korean War broke out on June 25, 1950 when tank-led North Korean troops invaded South Korea. The United States and 20 other allied countries fought on the side of South Korea under the United Nations flag, while Chinese soldiers came in to fight with North Korea. The conflict ended in a ceasefire three years later. (Yonhap News)