"Let's call the name of the 55-minute hero of the Eternal Sea Man, whose dream was to defend the country and the people."

President Yoon Seok-yeol attended the 24th West Sea Protection Day commemoration ceremony held at the National Daejeon Memorial Center on the morning of today (8th), and after doing so, he called out the names of each of the "55 West Sea Guardian Warriors."

It is a so-called "Roll Call" type of tribute.

This is the first time a sitting president has called out all 55 veterans at the ceremony.

After taking the podium, President Yun rhymed, "If you call someone because you can't forget them, I will remember them forever," and then sang the names of 55 people in turn for about five minutes, starting with the late Major Yoon Young-ha, Sergeant Han Sang-kook, Sergeant Cho Chun-hyung, Sergeant Hwang Do-hyun, and Sergeant Seo Ji-won.

It was the name of the war dead, including the Second Battle of Yeonpyeong, the bombing of the Cheonan ship, and the bombardment of Yeonpyeong Island.

President Yun cried for 5 seconds before the call began, unable to continue.

He covered his nose and mouth with his hands and lowered his head for a while.

The bereaved family was also caught stealing tears during the call.

President Yun said, "Warriors who have fulfilled their mission and mission to protect the West Sea. The Republic of Korea will forever remember the 2 minutes of warriors."



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Since then, the commemorative speech has used the expression "North Korean provocation" a total of six times.

"We are here today to remember the dedication of the warriors who defended the West Sea against North Korea's armed provocations," Yun said.

"Our Navy and Marine Corps soldiers have defended the Northern Limit Line (NLL) and our territory with blood from numerous North Korean armed provocations, including the Battle of Yeonpyeong, the Battle of Taecheong, and the Bombardment of Yeonpyeong Island," he said, emphasizing that "North Korea's reckless provocations must be paid for."

This is in contrast to former President Moon Jae-in's 6 and 2020 West Sea Defense Day commemorations, when he honored the warriors but did not explicitly use the term "North Korean provocation."

In his 2021 commemorative speech, President Moon said, "I understand that the American people are very concerned about North Korea's missile test. Now is the time for both North and South Korea to make efforts to continue dialogue."

On the right side of the stage of the ceremony, the "March 2021 Machine Gun" donated by Mrs. Yun Cheong-ja, the mother of the late Sergeant Min Pyeong-ki, one of the "46 Warriors of the Cheonan," the sail flags and floats and ship plaques that were hoisted on the Chamsuri 3 and Cheonan, the plaques of the heavy weapons company that were hit by fragments of North Korean radiation shells during the shelling of Yeonpyeong Island, and a model ship, were displayed.

Yun examined this and emphasized that "we must never forget North Korea's armed provocations," the president's office said in a news release.

The president's office added that 26 representatives of bereaved families and veterans were seated as key greeting seats, and they were also present at President Yun's wreaths and incense.

(Photo = Yonhap News)