South Korean official in Santa Rosa admonishes North Korea over weapons program

Speaking before hundreds of veterans and their families Thursday afternoon in Santa Rosa during a ceremony honoring veterans of the Korean War, a South Korean consular official called on North Korea to abandon its efforts to build a nuclear weapon.

Jimin Kim, deputy consul at the Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in San Francisco, said the “blood-forged” alliance between the United States and South Korea had become “the linchpin for peace and security” on the Korean Peninsula and nearby parts of the globe.

But as he prepared to honor numerous American veterans of a war that ended more than six decades ago, Kim stressed the gravity of the current threat from North Korea, which has lately defied international demands against military provocations, most recently by firing a ballistic missile over Japan.

“Today, North Korea continues to pose threats to peace and security on the Korean Peninsula, as well as the international community, with its nuclear and missile provocations despite repeated international reprimand,” Kim said in remarks at the Santa Rosa Veterans Memorial Building.

“The North Korean regime should acknowledge that denuclearization is the only genuine path toward guaranteeing its security and economic development.”

If North Korea continues its current trajectory, Kim warned, South Korea will “respond strongly” according to its “stalwart” alliance with the United States.

“The Republic of Korea maintains a robust readiness posture capable of responding to any threats by North Korea, and it will remain steadfast in safeguarding the lives of its people and the security of the nation,” he said.

The remarks came before officials granted the South Korean government’s Ambassador for Peace Medal to a large group of veterans of the conflict that began in 1950 and involved not only South and North Korean forces, but also U.S. and Chinese Communist troops before being suspended by a 1953 armistice.

Kim was joined by North Coast Rep. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, and Rep. Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, both of whom said veterans of the Korean War have not received enough recognition.

“The Korean War has been referred to as the forgotten war, and it’s terrible that that happened the way it did, but it’s going to be events such as this, and with the presentation of the peace medal, where we make it right,” said Thompson. “No veteran should be forgotten. Every veteran who served our country should be honored, should be recognized and should be prized.”

One of the honored veterans, Santa Rosa resident Richard Lewis, said he agreed with that assessment - and he told his students as much when he was a schoolteacher.

“When I taught history, I said, the World War II veterans came home to parades and celebrations, the Vietnam veterans came home to get spit on and called baby killers, and the Korean War veterans came home and nobody knew we were gone,” said Lewis, 88. “That’s why it’s called a forgotten war.”

Still, Lewis, who served in the Army, said he was glad to know the South Korean government appreciated his service and called the peace medal a “nice honor.”

Similarly, Navy veteran William Welch, 85, said it “means a lot at this point” to have his Korean War service honored with a peace medal. But because of the recent threats from North Korea, he remained concerned about reviving armed conflict on a peninsula that technically remains at war.

“I have a real sense of foreboding - I think bad things could happen and might, and a lot of people are going to pay a terrible price,” said Welch, of Lincoln. “That’s really difficult to accept in this day and age. We’ve come so far and then (are) still faced with another armed conflict.”