Plaque unveiled to honor USMA class of 1946

Defense

Published: 09 Oct. 2022, 17:57 Updated: 09 Oct. 2022, 18:00

Plaque unveiled to honor USMA class of 1946

Cadets of the Korea Military Academy (KMA) pose with Lt. Gen. Willard Burleson, center, second row, KMA Superintendent Maj. Gen. Jeon Sung-dae, fifth from left, second row, Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Lee Seo-young, president of the Korea Defense Veterans Association-Korea Chapter, third from left, second row, and Korea JoongAng Daily CEO Cheong Chul-gun, second from left, second row, and others following the unveiling of a memorial plaque for U.S. Military Academy class of 1946 graduates who fell in the Korean War at the KMA campus in Nowon District, northern Seoulon Friday morning. [PARK SANG-MOON]

A plaque to honor the sacrifices made by the United States Military Academy (USMA) class of 1946 in the 1950-53 Korean War was unveiled Friday at the Korea Military Academy (KMA) in Nowon District, northern Seoul.

Installed near the KMA's Memorial Tower, the memorial plaque follows previous plaques placed for the USMA classes of 1947, 1948, 1949 and 1950.

The KMA plans to install two more plaques for the USMA classes of 1945 and 1951 in the same garden, which is a dedicated memorial park for USMA graduates who fell in the Korean War, by 2023, which marks the 70th anniversary of the end of Korean War hostilities.

Fourteen graduates of the USMA class of 1946 fell in the Korean War. The remains of eight were never recovered.

All 14 names were inscribed on the plaque unveiled on Friday during a ceremony hosted by the KMA and sponsored by the Korea Defense Veterans Association (KDVA).

The ceremony was attended by Lt. Gen. Willard Burleson, commanding general of U.S. Eighth Army; former South Korean Army Chief of Staff Kwon Oh-sung; Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Lee Seo-young, president of the KDVA-Korea Chapter; Maj. Gen. Jeon Sung-dae, superintendent of the KMA; Park Kyeong-mee, director for international cooperation at the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs; and Cheong Chul-gun, CEO of the Korea JoongAng Daily.

Speaking before the unveiling of the memorial plaque, Lt. Gen. Burleson highlighted the significance of the shared wartime sacrifice and democratic values borne by South Korea and the United States and the contribution of USMA graduates to the defense of South Korea and the two countries' alliance.

"The U.S. Military Academy class of 1946 paid a heavy price in defense of freedom, our values, and our great countries," Lt. Gen. Burleson said, noting that USMA graduates "paid more than their fair share in establishing the steadfast ROK-U.S. alliance we benefit from today."

ROK is the acronym of South Korea's official name, the Republic of Korea.

In a reference to heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula, Burleson also added that it was the duty of both the South Korean and U.S. militaries "to ensure that we protect our way of life and honor those who have come before us by ensuring that we maintain the day-to-day readiness of our ROK-U.S. forces," and called on the allies to maintain an "example of peace through strength."

In his speech before the unveiling, Maj. Gen. Jeon also urged the allies to remember the sacrifice of USMA's 1946 graduates and stand together in the face of North Korea's "continuous ballistic missile launch provocations."

"Today's free and democratic South Korea was only made possible by the precious sacrifice borne of the heroes we commemorate at this ceremony," Jeon said.

BY MICHAEL LEE [lee.junhyuk@joongang.co.kr]