SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA – South Korea’s military has recovered the remains of 25 soldiers along with nearly 2,000 artifacts during a recent excavation at White Horse Ridge, one of the most intense battle sites of the Korean War, the Ministry of Defense announced Monday.
The excavation, conducted from October 15 to November 28 in Cheorwon, Gangwon Province, marked the resumption of operations after a three-year pause aimed at reducing military tensions along the border. About 100 South Korean troops worked alongside soldiers from United Nations Command member nations during the 40-day effort.
Alongside the 25 sets of remains, teams recovered 1,962 personal items. Initial examinations indicate that many of the remains are likely South Korean soldiers, though forensic analysis and DNA testing will be required for definitive identification.
“This effort returns Korean War heroes to their families and homeland, and reflects the government’s commitment to establishing peace in the Demilitarized Zone,” the ministry said.
President Lee Jae Myung, who took office in June, has pursued steps to improve inter-Korean relations, including removing propaganda loudspeakers from border areas. Lee has emphasized taking “proactive and gradual steps” to restore the 2018 inter-Korean military pact, which had been suspended amid tensions during former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s administration. That pact originally created buffer zones along the DMZ, removed some guard posts, and restricted live-fire exercises in designated areas.
In 2018, Seoul and Pyongyang agreed to retrieve remains from Arrowhead Ridge, another key battlefield, but North Korea withdrew from the project after the failed 2019 Hanoi summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. South Korea continued excavations independently, recovering the remains of around 424 soldiers, and later expanded efforts to White Horse Ridge, where 67 soldiers’ remains were previously found before the project was paused in 2022 due to deteriorating relations with the North.