![Korean War remains excavation site at Arrowhead Ridge [Photo: National Heritage Administration]](https://image.ajunews.com/content/image/2025/10/15/20251015104911897749.jpg)
SEOUL, October 15 (AJP) - A project to excavate the remains of South Korean soldiers killed during the 1950–53 Korean War has resumed near the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) in Gangwon Province, the Ministry of National Defense said Wednesday.
The project aims to "return the remains of war victims to their families and transform the DMZ into a zone of peace," the ministry explained.
As part of a series of conciliatory efforts to ease military tensions between the two Koreas since South Korean President Lee Jae-myung took office earlier this year, the project's resumption came about three years after it was halted in 2022.
In 2018, both Koreas agreed under the Sept. 19 military pact to jointly excavate remains in the DMZ including Cheorwon. South Korea began excavations in April 2019, but North Korea did not participate. The project was suspended in November 2022 due to security concerns as inter-Korean relations deteriorated.
The project aims to "return the remains of war victims to their families and transform the DMZ into a zone of peace," the ministry explained.
As part of a series of conciliatory efforts to ease military tensions between the two Koreas since South Korean President Lee Jae-myung took office earlier this year, the project's resumption came about three years after it was halted in 2022.
In 2018, both Koreas agreed under the Sept. 19 military pact to jointly excavate remains in the DMZ including Cheorwon. South Korea began excavations in April 2019, but North Korea did not participate. The project was suspended in November 2022 due to security concerns as inter-Korean relations deteriorated.
Nearly 500 remains were recovered along with more than 100,000 belongings, and about a dozen of the remains have been identified.
* This article, published by Aju Business Daily, was translated by AI and edited by AJP.
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