Return of war dead to help S. Korea, China push for peace process

The Korean War broke out on June 25, 1950, when tanks-led North Korean troops invaded South Korea. The United States and 20 other allied countries fought on the side of South Korea under the United Nations flag, while China came to the aid of North Korea in the war.

Repatriation of the remains of more than 400 Chinese soldiers killed in the 1950-53 Korean War to China is expected to help the two nations push for a "peacemaking process" on the Korean Peninsula, China's state media said.

The China Daily published the commentary written by Woo Jin-hoon, a guest professor at Renmin University, as an aircraft carrying the remains of 437 Chinese soldiers arrived at an airport in China's northeastern city of Shenyang from South Korea for final burial.

It marked the first such return of Chinese soldiers' remains since the Korean war ended. A photo of South Korean soldiers carrying dark brown coffins where the remains are placed featured the front page of the newspaper.

"The repatriation of the remains of Chinese soldiers may seem to be a small step, but it embodies great wisdom in bringing China and South Korea closer together, so that the two neighbors can strengthen cooperation and press ahead with the peacemaking process on the peninsula for the greater good of Northeast Asia," Woo said.

The repatriation also provided "a chance for Beijing and Seoul to deepen their cooperation in facilitating the peacemaking process on the peninsula, in particular sending a message to North Korea and prompting it to reflect upon its past, present and prospects" Woo said.

South Korean President Park Geun-hye offered to return the remains as a goodwill gesture during her visit to Beijing in last June.

Piao Jianyi, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Chinese newspaper that the repatriation would help people of the two nations get closer "emotionally."

"The fact that Seoul has invested tremendous manpower and material resources to collect and preserve the remains is certain to move the Chinese public," Piao said.

"Birth and death are the two most important things in Oriental culture. Both Chinese and Koreans will agree that dead soldiers should come back to their homelands, just like falling leaves returning to the roots," Piao said.