Moon vows to build up military
President Moon Jae-in shakes hands with a graduate of the Korea Military Academy during a graduation ceremony at the academy in Seoul, Tuesday. / Yonhap
By Lee Min-hyung
President Moon Jae-in reiterated his determination to build up the country’s armed forces to counter threats from North Korea in a speech at the graduation ceremony for cadets of the nation’s top military academy, Tuesday.
“Military prowess and security readiness are the foundations for peace against provocation,” Moon said in a congratulatory speech at the Korea Military Academy in Seoul, Tuesday.
“We need to hold dialogue with North Korea on its denuclearization, while at the same time forge responsive military systems to prepare for the its nuclear and missile threats,” he said.
A group of 2,000 people — including 223 new army officers — attended the 74th graduation ceremony. This marks the first time in 10 years that the attended the graduation ceremony.
After the ceremony, the graduates will take an officers’ basic education course for four months and be deployed to army units nationwide.
The President awarded badges of rank to the graduates in person.
“I sent a high-level delegation to North Korea on Monday with the goal of achieving denuclearization and peace on the peninsula,” Moon said. But toward that end, he added, it is also crucial for the South to build a stronger military to be ready for provocations by the North.
“To make the military stronger, you have to win support and love from the people. I hope all graduates will help the public get a step closer to their shared dream of peace and prosperity in Korea.”
Kim Min-joo, 24, a graduate whose grandfather served as an independence fighter during the March 1st Movement in 1919, said she is more than proud to follow in his footsteps as an army officer. The historic movement came against the backdrop of Japan’s colonial rule of Korea from 1910 to 1945.
“I will be loyal to the public and sacrifice myself for the nation to live up to the reputation of my father and grandfather,” she said. Her father also was an army officer.
The Korea Military Academy also conferred honorary graduation certificates to seventeen former independence fighters — including Kim Young-kwan and Lee Young-soo — in recognition of their sacrifice in helping the nation achieve independence from the Japanese occupation.