Fallen French soldier's ID tag returned after 67 yrs

All Headlines 21:12 June 01, 2019

By Oh Seok-min

SINGAPORE, June 1 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's defense minister delivered the military identification tag of a French soldier who fought in the 1950-53 Korean War to the French defense minister on Saturday, his office said.

Early last month, the South Korean military found the dog tag carrying an inscription that reads "MOALIC. YVES, M RENNE C FRENCH," during the demining and excavation project under way on Arrowhead Ridge, a former battle site inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) that separates the two Koreas.

During the bilateral talks with his French counterpart, Florence Parly, in Singapore, Jeong handed over the item, which was found to have belonged to Yves Moalic, who served as a medic during the Korean War as part of the United Nations Forces.

He died on Oct. 6, 1952, during the battle on the ridge and was laid to rest later in his home country, according to the ministry.

South Korean Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo (C) talks about the dog tag of a French medic who died during the Korean War to his French counterpart, Florence Parly (L), during their bilateral talks in Singapore on June 1, 2019. (Yonhap)

It was the first time that an item believed to belong to a French soldier was found over the course of the excavation project that began in April.

Eight French soldiers who fought the Korean War went missing, and three of them are presumed to be buried on or around Arrowhead Ridge in the border county of Cheorwon, Gangwon Province.

"Minister Jeong vowed to make the utmost efforts for the swift excavation and repatriation of the remains of the missing service persons," the ministry said in a release.

During a press briefing, Jeong told reporters, "Such a meaningful event is expected to help the two sides strive further to bolster the bilateral relations and to deepen defense cooperation."

So far, the military has discovered more than 325 pieces of bone, presumed to be from around 50 people, and over 23,000 items during the project.

Under the inter-Korean military accord aimed at reducing tensions and building trust, Seoul and Pyongyang had planned to carry out the joint excavation project for about six months from April.

But the North has remained unresponsive to calls for it to participate as agreed, leaving the South Korean military to carry out the operation alone.