Mayor Park Hyungdeok: "Doing Our Best to Ensure US Soldiers Remember Their Service in Korea Fondly"

Dongducheon City Successfully Hosts
the 18th Korea-US Friendship Festival

Dongducheon City in Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Park Hyungdeok) announced on the 29th that the 2025 Korea-US Friendship Festival, held on the 27th at the Korea-US Friendship Square in the Bosan-dong Tourist District, concluded successfully with the participation of approximately 2,000 citizens.

Dongducheon City held the 2025 Korea-US Friendship Festival on the 27th at the Korea-US Friendship Square in Bosan-dong Tourist District. Provided by Dongducheon City

Celebrating its 18th year, the Korea-US Friendship Festival was co-hosted by Dongducheon City and the Tourist District Merchants Association. The event was organized to promote mutual exchange and friendship between local residents and US Forces Korea personnel, as well as to revitalize the tourist district.

The festivities began at 1 p.m. with hands-on programs featuring 13 workshops from the Bosan-dong Tourist District, a Dongducheon City promotional booth, and a noodle bazaar hosted by the Bosan-dong Saemaul Leaders Association. The Tourist District Merchants Association also introduced a locally branded beer of their own planning. The event featured a variety of performances that all generations could enjoy, including local performance teams, a traditional Korean dance by the Dongducheon branch of the Veterans Dance Association, a taekwondo demonstration team, and stages by invited singers Shin Haesol, Giriboy, and Tae Jin-ah.

Mayor Park Hyungdeok stated, "Dongducheon citizens and US Forces Korea are walking together on the path to safeguarding peace on the Korean Peninsula. We will continue to work together so that the special sacrifices made by Dongducheon citizens for the security of the Republic of Korea are justly recognized and rewarded. At the same time, we will do our utmost to ensure that the time US soldiers spend serving in Korea is meaningful and remembered fondly."

Kim Bongjin, president of the Tourist District Merchants Association, which co-hosted the event, also said, "I hope that the friendship between Korea and the United States will become even stronger, and that Dongducheon will become united through communication and harmony. I also hope this festival will serve as an opportunity for the tourist district to establish itself as a representative tourism landmark of the region."

Brigade Commander David O’Leary, who attended as the representative of the US side, conveyed his congratulations, saying, "I hope that our soldiers will continue to actively participate in community activities and further strengthen our friendship with Dongducheon City."

This 2025 Korea-US Friendship Festival served as an opportunity to commemorate and further solidify the friendship between the two countries. Dongducheon City plans to continue promoting a variety of programs for Korea-US cultural exchange in the future.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.