Yoon hosts Ukraine summit, visits National Children's Hospital

During his visit to Ukraine, President Yoon met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the Mariinsky Palace in Kiev on July 15 (local time). "The Republic of Korea will stand with the Ukrainian people. For the freedom of Ukraine!" Yoon wrote in the Mariinsky Palace guest book ahead of the summit. Meanwhile, First Lady Kim held a meeting with First Lady Olena Zelenska. On the same day, Yoon and Kim paid a visit to Ohmadiyat National Children's Hospital. The hospital was founded in 1894 to care for children seriously injured during the war and mothers in need. The hospital treats up to 20,000 children a year and performs about 10,000 surgeries each year. Nearly 500 children have been killed and 1,058 injured in Russia's attack on Ukraine, the hospital said, and they need help from around the world. Yoon said "Both the Ukrainian and Korean children are very precious to their grandfather. I hope they will be treated well here and grow up to be wonderful and healthy." The children who participated in the conversation delivered handwritten letters on origami cards to Yoon and Kim.

They also visited the hospital’s Children’s Human Rights Protection Center. According to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, from February 2022, when the war in Ukraine began, to June 2023, there were approximately 25,000 civilian casualties, of which 1,624 were children, with 532 killed and 1,092 seriously injured. Children's playgrounds have become daily battlefields of life and death. In the midst of these war crimes and human rights abuses, Yoon has made it clear in his humanitarian package that he will be a partner in fostering freedom, peace, and prosperity in Ukraine. South Korea will further expand its support for Ukraine's urgently needed mine detectors and deminers. Mine detectors and protective clothing were delivered to Ukraine in May as a follow-up to the Korea-Ukraine summit, and additional support including demining equipment is planned.

Yoon attends commemorations of UN Vetrans Day and 70th anniversary of Armistice Day

President Yoon and First Lady Kim attended the 'commemorations of UN Vetrans Day and 70th anniversary of Armistice Day' on Thursday evening, July 27, at the Busan Cinema Center Outdoor Theater. Yoon personally welcomed the 62 UN veterans on stage as they entered, escorted by a guard of honor, and escorted Canadian veteran Ted Aidy, the last to enter, to his seat next to the president. Yoon presented the National Medal of Honor Pomegranate to the late Australian Army veteran Private Thomas Conlon Parkinson (whose child, Sharon Parkinson McCowan, received the award) and the National Service Medal to U.S. Army veteran Staff Sergeant Donald Reed. In his remarks at the ceremony, Yoon expressed his gratitude, saying, "We honor and pay our deepest respects to the veterans who sacrificed their lives for freedom of Korea. Seventy-three years ago, countless young men and women from across the free world marched under the United Nations flag to defend the freedom of a country they knew nothing about. Korea will never forget its gratitude to you and our allies for risking your lives in times of need. More than 70 years after the signing of the Korean Armistice on this day in 1953, UNMIK continues to play a key role in keeping peace on the Korean Peninsula and protecting the Republic of Korea. Today's Korea stands on the sacrifices, dedication and bloodied uniforms of UN forces. Busan has transformed from a city of more than one million refugees during the Korean War into the world's second-largest transshipment port and a global logistics hub. With the help of UN participating countries, Busan rose from the ashes of war to become a world-class maritime city, and is now preparing to host the most successful World Expo in history. As a responsible member of the international community, Korea will stand in solidarity with liberal democracies and strive for freedom, peace, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region and around the world, with the U.S.-ROK alliance as the core pillar.

The Republic of Korea will forever remember its great heroes." At the ceremony, New Zealand's Governor General, Dem Cindy Kiro, delivered greetings on behalf of the participating countries. "We take this opportunity to commemorate the heroic service and sacrifice of the Allied Forces of 22 countries, including the Republic of Korea. It is also a time to celebrate the remarkable progress and achievements that the Republic of Korea has made since the end of the war. The greatest reward for the efforts of the ROK and allied forces is the establishment of the Republic of Korea as a beacon of freedom, democracy, and prosperity. May the Korean Peninsula be reunified and the pain of division be healed. We call on North Korea to engage in constructive dialogue with the Republic of Korea and the international community to achieve lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula." As Yoon left the event, he shook hands with each veteran individually, thanking them for their sacrifice and dedication. The event was attended by more than 200 government representatives from UN participating countries, 700 veterans and family members of Korean War veterans and veterans organizations, and a total of 2,600 people, including government officials, citizens, and students.