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Oct. 1 marked the 59th anniversary of South Korea¡¯s Armed Forces Day. It commemorates the first successful repulsion of North Korean troops by the South¡¯s military past the 38th Parallel in Yangyang, Gangwon Province on Oct. 1, 1950.
Article 5, Clause 1 of South Korea¡¯s Constitution stipulates that the Republic of Korea strives to maintain world peace and disavows wars of invasion. And Clause 2 stipulates that the duty of South Korea¡¯s military is to carry out the sacred duty of guaranteeing national peace and to defend its territory while its political neutrality is observed. The pride, mission, honor and duty of the South Korean military come from this basic law.
Over the past few years, the level of morale in the South Korean military has been somewhat depressed. There were several occasions when the Korean public felt sorry for the military. The heroes who died in the West Sea battle five years ago were not able to get the proper reward and treatment from their own country. And the head of the country even referred to the military as a place where young South Koreans ¡°rot away¡± for a few years.
As the scope of inter-Korean exchanges grows wider, the identity crisis within the South Korean military worsens, with young soldiers in the front lines questioning why they have to stand guard with their rifles in hand. And word that the redrawing of the Northern Limit Line could be discussed during the inter-Korean summit is producing mixed feelings within the South Korean military, whose top priority is to protect the nation¡¯s territory.
But a radical warming of ties between the two Koreas does not change the essential mission of the South Korean military, whose duty is to protect the citizens and territory of its nation. And the geopolitical circumstance involving South Korea is not going to change either. Rather, the responsibilities of the South Korean military will only grow heavier.
There was a time in South Korea¡¯s past where the relationship between the public and the military was anything but amicable. But our military succeeded in overcoming that painful history and become a protector of the public by focusing on its original duties. Now, South Korea¡¯s military must maintain discipline, all the while upgrading its level of technology, as well as improving its strategy and operational procedures in line with global military trends. Soldiers cannot change their duty to protect their nation; they must realize that their tour of duty is not just a duty but an honor. We expect South Korean soldiers to have big ambitions.
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