Announcement

November 11, 2023 

2023 U.S. Veterans Day:  Veterans Built the ROK-U.S. Alliance

Americans across the United States have set aside November 11^th each year for Veterans Day to remember and honor our Veterans who served around the world to protect the American way of life.  The freedoms, rights, and privileges we enjoy were earned by Veterans on battlefields on American soil and foreign shores.  Families of Veterans spent many nights worried about the dangers that loved ones faced and endured the heartache of separation.  These sacrifices were for noble causes that answered their Nation’s call to serve and to do their parts (and more) for all Americans.

For our Veterans who served in Korea, there is added meaning to serving on a foreign land … Korea Veterans proudly say that their service in Korea was worth it because Korea has risen to be one of the great countries in the world and one of America’s most important allies … only 70 years after the signing of the Korean Armistice Agreement in 1953.  This is the sentiment shared by 100 Korea Defense Veterans and their companions who participated in KDVA’s Korea Revisit on October 10-15, 2023.  These participants were very thankful that the ROK Government and Korean people remembered and honored them.  They have returned to their hometowns as energized ambassadors for the ROK-U.S. Alliance.  KDVA is proud to select these KDVA members for this amazing program each year.

American Veterans have served with their Korean allies in Korea for over 73 years and on deployments to Vietnam and the Middle East.  Together, they have been a force for good that has made a significant difference.

KDVA and the Korea-US Alliance Foundation (KUSAF) salute and sincerely thank over 1.8 million American Veterans who fought in the Korean War from 1950 to 1953, and over 3.3 million American Veterans who defended, and continue to defend, South Korea and American interests since 1953. Together, “We Are the Alliance”!

As we remember our Veterans and their Families on U.S. Veterans Day, please use this day to support and thank Veterans in your communities.  You might also consider visiting a memorial dedicated to Korean War Veterans by using this KDVA link, https://kdva.vet/korean-war-memorials/. Please consider joining KDVA and be part of KDVA’s 1^st 10,000 members (we are over 9,400 and counting), https://kdva.vet/join-kdva/.

Download Release: Press Release_KDVA and KUSAF for U.S. Veterans Day_20231111

KDVA Congratulates the U.S. 7th Air Force’s Founding on November 1, 1940

November 1, 2023

The Korea Defense Veterans Association congratulates the men and women of the U.S. 7th Air Force on the 83rd anniversary of its activation on November 1, 1940 — the U.S. Air Force’s oldest numbered air force. Today, 7th Air Force is headquartered in Osan Air Base, Republic of Korea under the leadership of Lt. Gen. Scott L. Pleus and Chief Master Sergeant Jeremiah W. Ross.

Since its establishment as the Hawaiian Air Force and redesignation as the 7th Air Force after the start of World War II, its airmen fought throughout the Central Pacific and remained in the Pacific until being deactivated after the Korean War. In 1966, 7AF was reactivated and headquartered in Vietnam and deactivated again after the war.

7AF deployed to Osan Air Base, Republic of Korea in 1986 and became a part of U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) and the U.S. Air Force component to the ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command’s Air Component Command. (https://www.7af.pacaf.af.mil/)

KDVA is very proud that so many of our members have served in the 7th Air Force in Korea. 7AF’s partnership with the ROK Air Force continues to be a great example of combined airpower. They have been a major part of the combat power and deterrence against North Korea for almost four decades, and KDVA looks forward to working “Together for the ROK-U.S. Alliance”!

Curtis M. Scaparrotti
General, U.S. Army (Retired)
President, Korea Defense Veterans Association

September 29, 2023

2023년 9월 29 일

Annual “U.S.-ROK Alliance Day” on October 1, 2023

주한미군전우회 및 한미동맹재단 “한미동맹의 날” 공동 메시지, 2023 년 10 월 1 일

As Americans and Koreans celebrate their 70th anniversary of the great ROK-U.S. Alliance in 2023, the Korea Defense Veterans Association and Korea-US Alliance Foundation ask all our members, donors, sponsors, and partners to support the annual “U.S.-ROK Alliance Day” on October 1st.

주한미군전우회와 한미동맹재단은 2023 년 위대한 한미동맹 70 주년을 맞이하여, 모든 회원, 후원자, 파트너들이 주한미군전우회가 미국에서 지정한 10 월 1 일 “한미동맹의 날”을 축하하고 지지해 주실 것을 당부합니다.

KDVA registered this day to honor and remember October 1st as the signing of the 1953 ROK- U.S. Mutual Defense Treaty, in which the two allies stated that they are “reaffirming their desire to live in peace with all peoples and governments, and desiring to strengthen the fabric of peace in the Pacific area, desiring to declare publicly and formally their common determination to defend themselves against external armed attack so that no potential aggressor could be under the illusion that either of them stands alone in the Pacific area …” In 2023, the Alliance has taken historic steps with the ROK State Visit in April and the ROK-U.S.-Japan Trilateral Leaders’ Summit in August which substantively built upon the strong foundation of the Alliance and made the allies more connected for regional cooperation and defense against the North Korean threat.

주한미군전우회는 한미 양국이 “모든 국민과 모든 정부가 평화적으로 생활하고자 하는 희망을 재확인하며, 또한 태평양 지역에 있어서의 평화 기구를 공고히 할 것을 희망하고, 당사국 중 어느1국이태평양지역에있어서고립하여있다는환각을어떠한잠재적침략자가갖지않도록 외부로부터의 무력 공격에 대하여 자신을 방위하고자 하는 공동의 건의를 공공연히 또한 정식으로 선언할 것을 희망하고…” 라고 명시한 1953 년 10 월 1 일, 한미상호방위조약 체결일을 기념하고 기억하고자 합니다. 2023 년 한미동맹은 4 월 대한민국 대통령의 미국 국빈방문과 8월 한미일 3국 정상회담을 통해, 강력한 동맹 기반을 실질적으로 구축하고 북한 위협에 대한 3 국간의 협력과 방어를 더욱 공고히 하는 역사적인 발걸음을 내디뎠습니다.

Building on stronger and more meaningful bonds is at the heart of what makes the ROK-U.S. Alliance unbreakable and strong. For 70 years, Korean War Veterans and Korea Defense Veterans have served as the living embodiment of the sacrifice and contributions that have made American and Korean lives better. Over 1.8 million Americans served in the Korean War and an additional 3.3 million Americans have served in Korea since the Korean Armistice Agreement on July 27, 1953. Each of these 5.1 million Americans did their duty and some gave their all for the Alliance.

더욱 강력하고 의미 있는 유대관계를 구축하는 것이 한미동맹을 깨지지 않고 굳건하게 만드는 핵심입니다. 지난 70 년 동안 한국전쟁 참전용사와 주한미군 복무장병들은 한미 양국 국민들이 보다 나은 생활을 할 수 있도록 헌신하고 기여하였습니다. 180만 명 이상의 미국 장병들이 한국전쟁에참전했으며,1953년7월27일정전협정이후에도330만명이넘는미국장병들이 계속해서 한국에 복무했습니다. 510 만 명의 미국 장병들은 각자의 의무를 이행했으며 일부는 한미동맹을 위해 자신의 모든 것을 희생했습니다.

As supporters of the Alliance and our Veterans, KDVA and KUSAF hope that all Americans and Koreans will look upon this day on October 1st each year with a renewed sense of purpose and resolve that “Freedom Is Not Free.” KUSAF is working to make October 1st being recognized as U.S.-ROK Alliance Day in the Republic of Korea.

주한미군전우회와 한미동맹재단은 한미동맹과 참전용사 및 복무장병들의 지지자로서, 한미 양국 국민들이 10 월 1 일을 맞이하면서 “자유는 거저 주어지는 것이 아니다”라는 목적 의식과 결의를 새롭게 다졌으면 합니다. 한미동맹재단은 10 월 1 일이 한국에서도 한미동맹의 날로 지정되기를 기대합니다.

“Together for the ROK-U.S. Alliance”

“함께해요 한미동맹”

Download Release: Press Release_KDVA and KUSAF for 2023 U.S.-ROK Alliance Day_20230929

2023년 8월 16일

August 16, 2023

한미동맹재단과 주한미군전우회는 한미일 정상회담 개최를 환영한다.

KUSAF (Korea-US Alliance Foundation) and KDVA (Korea Defense Veterans Association) Welcome the ROK-U.S.-Japan Summit

한미동맹재단과 주한미군전우회는 윤석열 대한민국 대통령, 조 바이든 미합중국 대통령, 기시다 후미오 일본 총리가 미국 메릴랜드 주 캠프 데이비드에서 8월 18일 개최하는 역 사적인 3국 정상회담을 환영하고 지지한다.
KUSAF and KDVA welcome and support the historic trilateral summit between ROK President Yun Suk-yeol, U.S. President Joe Biden, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to be held on August 18 at Camp David, Maryland, USA.

한미일 3국의 이번 정상회담은 작년 11월 캄보디아 한미일 정상회담과 올해 3, 5월의 한일 정상회담, 4월의 한미 정상회담 등을 통해 구축된 신뢰의 결과로서, 한반도를 포함 한 급변하는 세계 정세속에서 한반도 및 동북아 안보와 번영을 보장하는 역사적인 이정 표가 될 것이다.

The trilateral summit is a result of the trust built through the ROK-U.S.-Japan summit in Cambodia last November, the ROK-Japan summit in March and May this year, and the ROK-U.S. summit in April, and will be a historic milestone in ensuring the security and prosperity of the Korean Peninsula and Northeast Asia in a rapidly changing global environment.

사상 처음으로 미 대통령 별장에서 3국 정상회담을 개최함으로써, 한미일 3국의 개인적, 국가적 신뢰는 물론, 자유민주주의, 인권, 법치의 공유된 가치를 더욱 공고히 하는 계기 가 될 것으로 확신한다.
By hosting the trilateral summit at the U.S. President’s country residence for the first time, we are confident that it will further strengthen the personal and national trust of the three countries, as well as the shared values of liberal democracy, human rights, and the rule of law.

재단과 전우회는 이번 회담이 북한의 핵미사일 도발을 억제하고 북한 비핵화 방안을 모 색하며 자유롭고 개방된 인도태평양을 구축함으로써, 한반도, 동북아, 전 세계의 안보와 번영을 위한 새로운 비전을 보여주기를 기대한다. 아울러 러시아의 우크라이나 침공은 자유민주주의와 국제 평화에 대한 도전임을 분명히 하고 한미일 3국의 진전된 조치를 기대한다.

KUSAF and KDVA hope that the summit will demonstrate a new vision for security and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula, Northeast Asia, and the world by deterring North Korea’s nuclear and missile provocations, exploring ways to denuclearize North Korea, and building a free and open Indo-Pacific. We also reiterate that Russia’s aggression in Ukraine is a challenge to liberal democracy and international peace, and look forward to progressive action by the three countries.

한미동맹재단과 주한미군전우회는 한미일 안보 협력의 새로운 출발점이 될 이번 3 국 정상회담을 다시 한번 환영하며, 인도 태평양지역을 넘어선 전 지구촌에서 안보와 평화의 연대를 확산하는 활동을 지원할 것이다.

KUSAF and KDVA once again welcome the trilateral summit as a new starting point for security cooperation between the ROK, U.S., and Japan, and will support efforts to spread the solidarity of security and peace around the world as well as the Indo-Pacific Region.

함께해요 한미동맹!

“Together for the ROK-U.S. Alliance”