In this photo taken at the Korean War memorial park in Ethiopia on May 27, 2016, a Korean soldier shakes hands with an Ethiopian veteran who fought in the Korean War in the early 1950s. (image: Yonhap)
SEOUL, Sept. 23 (Korea Bizwire) – South Korea’s disabled veterans’ association said Friday they will visit Ethiopia next week to meet soldiers who fought in the Korean War (1950-53).
“Starting this year, we are planning to visit the countries that sent their soldiers to the Korean conflict one by one to meet the veterans who survived the war but cannot come to South Korea due to age, poor health or the long distance,” a KDVO official said.
The association has picked Ethiopia as the first country to visit, the KDVO said in a statement.
Kim Deok-nam, president of the Korea Disabled Veterans Association (KDVO), along with a group of disabled Korean veterans, will leave the country on Monday to deliver gifts of appreciation to local Korean War veterans in an event to be held in the Ethiopian capital city of Addis Ababa next week, the statement said.
In addition, the KDVO plans to deliver US$10,000 in funds to help the local Korean War veterans’ association in the African country build the “Korea Square” to remember Ethiopian soldiers killed during the war, it said.
During the 1950-53 Korean War, some 121 Ethiopian soldiers lost their lives and 536 were injured, it said.
(Yonhap)
