‘Hwandonghae National Defense History Memorial Hall’, Proposal for Establishing a National Defense Identity Memorial Facility in the East Coast Region

Kim Nam-il, Deputy Mayor of Pohang, Explains the Necessity of Visiting the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs

Construction of East Coast Memorial Hall ... Security Education and Succession of Patriotic Spirit

Kim Nam-il, Vice Mayor of Pohang City, visited the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs on the 30th of last month to propose the construction of the ‘Hwandonghae National Defense History Memorial Hall’.

Currently, various historical memorial facilities are scattered throughout the country, but there is a lack of facilities dedicated to national defense history in the East Coast region, which was a major battleground against foreign invasions such as those by North Korea, the Wokou pirates, and during the Imjin War.

Accordingly, Vice Mayor Kim Nam-il met with Yoon Jong-jin, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs, to actively explain the necessity of building a national defense history memorial hall encompassing the East Coast area and requested his interest and support.

Pohang was the last stronghold during the Korean War and the starting point for the counteroffensive to reclaim South Korean territory. Pohang City plans to reexamine its role as the center of the battlefield where UN forces were stationed during the Korean War, highlighting the US ‘Pohang Landing Operation,’ the Pohang District Battle which was the starting point of the northward counterattack along the Nakdong River front, and the Uljin-Samcheok armed guerrilla infiltration incident. The city aims to honor national veterans and redefine the role of the Hwandonghae region as an area of national defense and patriotism.

In particular, through the construction of the tentatively named ‘Hwandonghae National Defense History Memorial Hall,’ the plan is to build a complex facility that is not merely a space for memorials and tributes but also embodies the spirit and identity of the Hwandonghae region. It will showcase national defense relics such as those from the Korean War, the activities of student volunteer soldiers, and the current Marine Corps spirit, providing future generations with security education and offering the present generation opportunities for tours, stays, experiences, and tourism.

Vice Mayor Kim Nam-il stated, “We have an obligation to systematically organize the region’s national defense history and imprint it on future generations.” He added, “We will do our best to build the National Defense History Memorial Hall to inherit the national defense history and spirit of the East Coast of the Korean Peninsula, from Gangwon to Pohang and Ulsan, which has been relatively undervalued.”