Korea, U.S. begin joint analysis of Korean War remains

Officials take part in a project to retrieve the remains of soldiers killed in the 1950-53 Korean War at Arrow Head Ridge in Cheorwon, Gangwon, on April 10, 2020. [KOREA HERITAGE SERVICE]
Officials take part in a project to retrieve the remains of soldiers killed in the 1950-53 Korean War at Arrow Head Ridge in Cheorwon, Gangwon, on April 10, 2020.

Korea and the United States on Wednesday began their joint efforts to analyze remains presumed to be American soldiers killed during the 1950-53 Korean War, Seoul's Ministry of National Defense said Wednesday.

The ministry said its war remains excavation team and the U.S. Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) launched a two-day forensic identification of such remains.

A team comprising a dozen experts will analyze the specifications of three sets of remains believed to belong to U.S. soldiers ahead of their planned repatriation to the U.S. next month.

Two of the remains are presumed to be soldiers of the 2nd Infantry Division, each found in Yanggu and Hongcheon counties in Gangwon Province in 2010 and 2021, respectively.

The other remains were discovered in the central city of Sejong in 2012 and are presumed to be associated with the U.S. Army's 21st Regiment, 24th Infantry Division.

Korea and the U.S. have conducted a regular joint analysis of the remains of their soldiers annually since the founding of the ministry's excavation team in 2007.

Yonhap