Vietnam criticizes Korean leader for honoring war veterans

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Tue, August 22, 2017 | 00:47

Foreign Affairs

Vietnam criticizes Korean leader for honoring war veterans

Posted : 2017-06-13 16:21

Updated : 2017-06-14 11:14

Nguyet Thi Thanh, left, and Nguyen Tan Lan, the survivors of a Vietnam War massacre committed by South Korean soldiers, speaks at a weekly demonstration by former comfort women in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul, in April, 2015. / Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul

By Choi Ha-young

President Moon Jae-in's recent remarks on South Korean soldiers who participated in the 1960-75 Vietnam War are fueling anti-Korean sentiment in the Southeast Asian country.

In a speech to mark the June 6 Memorial Day, Moon lauded the soldiers who fought in Vietnam for their contributions to economic growth in the 1960s and 70s.

"The soldiers resolutely answered the call of the Republic of Korea. In the middle of the jungle and under sweltering heat, they carried out their duties faithfully. That's true patriotism," Moon said. "Their sacrifice laid the foundation for the country's economic growth."

Moon spoke about the soldiers apparently to urge people to remember fallen national heroes. However, this angered many Vietnamese, who contend Korean soldiers massacred thousands of civilians during the war.

"We ask the Korean government not to talk or behave in a way that hurts the feelings of the Vietnamese people and has a negative influence on the two countries' friendship and cooperation," Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswomen Le Thi Thu Hang said in a press release, Monday.

The ministry has lodged a complaint with the Korean Embassy in Vietnam regarding Moon's speech, the press release reads.

This is the Vietnamese government's "first-ever official warning" against Seoul regarding its alleged wartime massacres, Ku Su-jeong, an activist who has long dealt with the issue, told The Korea Times.

"I've heard low-key messages from Vietnam through unofficial routes, but have never seen a message like this," she said.

Vietnam has demonstrated the principle of "shutting out past affairs and opening to the future" and has not taken issue with the alleged massacres. However, the latest message from the Vietnamese government shows it may be changing its stance, she said.

This time, not only the government but also high-ranking soldiers added fuel to the fire, according to local media. "The Korean President's statement was inappropriate and distorted history," Lieutenant General Nguyen Quoc Thouc told state-run broadcaster Vietnam Television Corporation (VTC), Sunday.

The story further pointed out South Korea's miraculous economic growth is largely due to the sacrifices of Vietnamese citizens. It also criticized the Korean government for not officially acknowledging or apologizing. Another VTC story included vivid pictures of victims' bodies.

Two former liberal Presidents ― Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun ― offered apologies to Vietnam for the suffering Korea inflicted on the Vietnamese people during the war, but this lacked their recognition of the alleged massacres.

"There has been no sincere apology from Korea. Korea has never faced up to the reality," said Ku, executive director of Korea-Vietnam Peace Foundation. "I hope Moon will visit a massacre site and offer an apology."

South Korea sent more than 300,000 troops to Vietnam between 1964 and 1973, the second-largest contingent there after the United States. Then-President Park Chung-hee sent troops to battle the spread of communism, and the country received billions of dollars in loans from the U.S.

hayoung.choi@ktimes.com